A Path To Your Heart
by Sweet L
Summary: Before childhood friends, Luffy and Law are separated by a sad incident. Now many years later, Luffy finds Law, now a person who had closed himself to the world, and is determined to regain a place into his life and heart. AU. LawLu
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.**

 **Hello! This fanfic came from a dream that I had, and I decided to put it into words. Hope you like it!**

 **Thanks for reading, and leave a review if you like, they are highly appreciated.**

 **Sorry about possible grammar errors. English isn't my native language.**

* * *

"Hey, did you see the boy who lives in the other street?"

Luffy looks at the boy who's talking to him, confused about who he was talking about. He was new there, having recently moved to live with a woman named Dadan, that now would be his adoptive mother, and Ace, the boy who also lived there and didn't seem to like him very much, no matter how much he tried be nice and friendly with him. He always felt alone in that place, and there was nothing he hated more than to feel that way. So, whenever he could, he would ran away from home and go to play in the streets, where he had already made an amazing number of friends in the few days he had moved there.

"Boy who lives in the other street? Who's that?" Luffy question, wanting to know more about this boy.

"It's that strange boy who lives nearby! He's very strange, never going out his house for anything!"

"But of course he doesn't come out, he's sick! Didn't you see those strange white spots that he has in his body? They say that if you touch them, you get sick too! Isn't that scary !?" The other boy said, talking about the rumors he had heard from the other boys in the neighborhood.

Luffy looked at them, still confused on the subject. Getting sick when approaching someone may seem scary to others, but to Luffy that fact only increased his curiosity about this kid.

"Where does he live?" He asks the boys, they then giving him strange looks.

"Why do you want to know? Don't tell me you want to go there."

"Yes I do! Tell me where he lives!" He insisted, sounding like he was going for a great adventure, not a place that looked so dangerous in the other boys eyes.

"He lives in the second house down the street! But if I were you I wouldn't go there!" He warned, but Luffy seemed not to hear anything he had said, running to the place, more curious than ever to see this strange boy whom everyone talked about.

Luffy ran as fastest as he could, anxious, but getting there he was somewhat disappointed, since the walls of the house were too high and he couldn't see anything. But that was nothing he couldn't solve. In his own clumsy way, he managed to climb the wall of the house, finally being able to see inside. Looking to the window, he could see someone in front of it, a boy who had several white spots in his body, just like the street boys had described. But it weren't these white spots that really caught his attention. What really caught his attention was the expression on the boy's face.

He looked so sad and lonely ... Luffy knew these two feelings very well, and knew they were not good. Without thinking much, he picked up a small rock in the wall where he was, and then threw it in the window, hoping that the glass not break. He gave a big smile when he realized he had managed to call the boy's attention without doing any damage.

"Heeey!" He called out the boy, trying to get in touch with him. When the boy went to open the window, he smiled in satisfaction.

"Who are you? What do you want here?" The boy asked, in a tone that wasn't very friendly. But that wasn't anything that would frighten Luffy, or make him leave the place.

"I'm Luffy! What's your name?" He asked, excited to meet someone new, so excited that he had even forgotten the rumors that surrounded the boy.

"Why would I say my name to a stranger? What do you want here?" He repeated the same question as before, with the same threatening tone, and Luffy started getting somewhat irritated with the boy. He wanted answers and not more questions to answer. Things weren't fun like this ...

"Ahhh this isn't fun! I was curious to see you ever since everyone on the street told me about you!" He said, and the other boy began to look at him with a suspect and more menacing look than before.

"... You've come to laugh at me then?" He asked, and Luffy shook his head immediately, denying that this was true. He hadn't come to laugh at anyone, he was just curious to know the boy who everyone talked about.

"No! I just wanted to meet you! You look lonely... wanna be my friend?" Luffy said, giving a big smile to him, as the boy looked at him in surprise, as if the other boy was crazy.

"Stop kidding me! I don't want be your friend, now go away!" He replied, closing the window and going out of sight.

Luffy stared at the closed window, wondering if he had said something to the other boy that had offended him. Not finding an answer to that, he went down the wall and walked away, but not giving up in making that boy his friend.

Luffy wasn't a person to give up so easily.

Day after day he found himself once again going up the walls of the boy's house and throwing rocks at his window to draw his attention, not caring if the boys on the street or even Dadan and Ace said to him to stay away from the boy. He insisted every day until the boy finally decided to open the window of his house and talk to him again.

"Don't you ever get tired?" He asked Luffy, the latter giving a little laugh, as if all this was being a great adventure and a challenge for him.

"No! I won't give up until you become my friend!" He said, determined, prepared to insist the time it took to gain the attention and friendship of the other boy.

"People haven't told you? That if you get close to me you will get sick?" The other boy asked, curious. It was clear that Luffy had heard these rumors, but he didn't believed in them, or at least didn't cared about that.

"Yes they told me about that, but I don't care, this won't stop me from being your friend!" Luffy said simply, leaving the other boy surprised and speechless.

"You feel lonely, don't you?" Luffy asked, and then the other boy looked at him, tears filling his eyes without him noticing. He shook his head in agreement with the other boy, unable to say a word.

"Then be my friend! Then you won't ever be alone again!" He answered, the other finally agreeing with him.

"My name is ... Trafalgar Law." The boy finally revealed his name as proof that he had become his friend, and Luffy gave the biggest smile he had ever seen in his life.

"Ok Tra ... eh..Trafu ... Torao! We are friends from now on!" Luffy said, and Law gave a small laugh as the other couldn't speak his name.

From that day on everything changed between them, and every day Luffy appeared in the same place when climbing the wall of his house, they then spending the day talking and playing, each on their side. In these days he discovered several things about the boy, like his disease wasn't contagious as everyone said, but when he said that to the boys from the street where he lived no one believed him.

A few more days going by and he found himself no longer needing to climb up the walls of the boy's house, now entering through the front door. Law had told his parents about the strange boy who appeared every day in his window, insisting on having his friendship, and they were very happy to find someone who finally didn't discriminate their child because of his illness. From that day on he had free access to the Trafalgar family home, knowing his parents, who Luffy had found amazing, and also his little sister, who like him, had the same white marks on her body. Rather than remain in the streets as before, Luffy prefered to spend his days in Law's home, the other kids distancing themselves from him as he was in constant contact with the sick boy.

"You don't mind everyone turning away from you because of me?" Law questioned Luffy, feeling guilty. Luffy just shook his head in denial. He didn't cared about any of those boys, Law was much more special than any of them, and if he had Law as his friend he didn't needed anyone else.

"I don't care for them, I like you more!" He told Law while he was watching him with a surprised expression on his face. It was the first time anyone had said he liked the boy, aside from his parents and his sister.

"I... I like you too!" Law said, and Luffy stopped running to turn around and look at the boy, a big smile on his face. Listening Law saying that he liked him made him feel really happy, in a way he had never felt before. Waving his arms to the boy he said bye to him, running back to his house, eager for the next day to come and to see Law once again.

But little he knew that this day would never come.

During the night he woke up, hearing loud noises of sirens and people talking loudly, making him wonder what had happened. Curious, he got up from his bed, heading toward the front door, which was open. There he saw Dadan and several other neighbors chatting in the street, and even more curious than before, he asked what had happened. Saying it was a matter of adults, Dadan caught him by his shirt to take him back inside, but when he heard the name of his friend's family being told by several people, he immediately realized that something was very wrong.

Biting Dandan's hand, he escaped from her and ran through neighborhood streets, passing through several people until he reached the house where his friend lived, there seeing the worst of the possible visions. The house he would visit everyday was on fire, surrounded by fire trucks, their sirens nearly leaving him deaf. He started to yell for Law, trying to move forward among all those uniformed mens and curious people, but was stopped before he could go further.

"Torao! Are you there? Answer me!" Luffy continued to scream while a men he had never seen in his life carried him away, preventing him from finding his friend. He shook himself, trying in every way to escape from him, but not succeeding. And with each passing moment he found himself farther to find Law, as well farther to find answers to what had happened.

Answers that would come few days later, due to his insistence on knowing what had happened. Law's parents were killed, along with his sister. And as for Law, the only survivor of that sad incident, no one knew where he was.

He just disappeared.

Knowing this, Luffy cried, not only because he would never see those people who were so nice to him again, but also because he couldn't stop thinking in how much Law was suffering. The boy that was lonely before, now was completely alone in this world, and he couldn't even see him and try to do something for him.

But even if he couldn't see him now, he wouldn't give up to find him in the future.

And from that day on, something has become a routine for Luffy.

Every day he spent a great part of his day in front of that house where he used to spend his days beside his friend, or what was left of it, hoping his friend would show up somewhere, sometime. But time passed, and in the end this never happened. And after years and years waiting for any sign of life from Law, Luffy finally found himself giving up, believing he would never see his friend again.

And so the years passed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hiii!**

 **Like always thank you to everyone who stopped by to read, for the likes and follows and everything else. A suuuuper special thanks to Staticy Fox Atra, BabyGhost123, sarge1130 , poyochin , SEllen23, Guest, Apple Bloom and Monkey D. Anea. for the reviews! They are always appreciated.**

 **Bye!**

* * *

"I'm bored..."

Luffy looks at his cell phone, noticing that hours had passed ever since he arrived that place. Hospitals, he hated them. Losing count of how much time he had spent on them lately, he thought he would be free of them ever since he traveled away from home to spend some time with his brother Sabo, but judging by the situation he found himself now he was mistaken. Here he was, inside one of them once again, where he was literally dragged by his brother.

He knew he had to take care of himself, since he still wasn't fully recovered from the incident that had taken place weeks ago, but he didn't want to be there. This place brought the worst possible memories the boy. It was in one of them that he ended up spending a great part of his days lately, that he stayed in a coma for days and days and almost died, that he felt the deepest despair when he learned about the death of his brother, Ace. That alone was enough for him to never even want to pass in front of one of them.

Closing his eyes, the memories of that day began to come back to his mind. He still could hear the deafening sound of the shots, of the desperate cries. He could still smell blood, and see his hands soaked with it. He could still remember the last words his brother said to him, before he left his life forever.

These were things he would never forget, memories that were embedded in his mind for the rest of his life.

Shaking his head, Luffy tried to dispel these thoughts from his mind, focusing on what was happening around him. Among the various people he could see in front of him, one caught his attention. A tall man, who by the way he was dressed was a doctor of that place, but didn't look much like one. His hands were partially covered with tattoos, which also seemed to cover a part of his arms, and his hair was pretty messy. He was surrounded by some weird people, including a man with a strange hat that looked like the head of a penguin. While they talked, he could vaguely hear what was being said, but couldn't understand much since he didn't know anything about these medical terms which they were talking about.

"Understood. Leave it to me, doctor ..." The man with the penguin hat paused, looking at the other man clothes, apparently looking for his name.

"Trafalgar Law." The other man completed, saying his name. And in that moment, Luffy feels everything stopping around him.

That name ... he recognized the name. His mind then turned to the past, more exactly to his childhood, in the days when he still lived with his adoptive mother Dadan. In the times when he met the lonely boy who lived nearby him, with whom he made a strong friendship, and whom he hadn't seen for years, not even knowing if he was still alive. The name of that boy and this man who in front of him were the same ... could it be possible that they were the same person?

Without thinking twice, Luffy got up from the seat that he occupied for some time and ran after the man, who had just left the hospital.

"Hey! Wait!" He called to the man, trying to get his attention, but not succeeding because he didn't even stopped to see who was calling him.

But Luffy wouldn't give up so easily.

Continuing to follow the man, he grabbed his arm as he reached him, preventing him from continuing to walk. The doctor turned immediately to see who had stopped him, casting an angry and intimidating look, but Luffy didn't feel bothered with it. He was too busy observing the man's face, trying to find any trace in common with the boy he had known in his childhood. Something that wasn't too hard to find.

"Take your hands off my arm now." The familiar man said to Luffy, angrier than ever, but he didn't even hear what was being said to him. He was too surprised to pay attention to anything now.

"... Y-you ... I know you ..." Luffy says, a smile starting to appear on his face, now convinced that this man who was in front of him really was his childhood friend, whom he had sought for so long.

"Really? Well, I don't know you, so take your hands off me." Law said, still angry, not having any idea of where that boy knew him, and not interested in knowing as well.

"Don't you remember me? We played together when we were kids!" Luffy insisted, trying to get Law to remember him.

It was only then, when the boy mentioned his childhood, that he began to think about who that boy could be. He was surprised when the boy said that he played with him, when in his childhood he had a disease that made everyone discriminate him and stay away from him.

Well, everyone but one person.

A boy full of energy that once appeared out of nowhere in his house, and insisted so much for him to let him come into his life. A boy who had very similar features with this boy, and that had the same bright smile which he could never forget.

"You..."

"I'm Luffy! Do you remember me, Torao?" It was then that Law's mind cleared like never before. There was only one person in his life who had called him for that strange nickname. It was exactly a boy who was called Luffy.

"I... remember you." The doctor said and Luffy smiled like he never smiled before, genuinely glad to see that Law still remembered him, even after all these years.

"I can't believe it! I thought I'd never see you again, Torao!" Shishishi! "Luffy practically jumped on the man, putting his arms around him and hugging him tightly, surprising Law. The man felt really uncomfortable, since he didn't like to be touched by anyone, even if it was for someone who was already part of his life, or at least was in the past.

He didn't like to be close to anyone, it doesn't matter who it was... or at least this was the image that he liked to pass to other people.

"Yes ... this is certainly a surprise." Law gave a small smile, which immediately disappeared when he pushed the boy away from him in a not very gentle way. Luffy looked at him, not understanding what happened, as the man took a few steps back.

When Luffy looked at the man's face, he couldn't help but notice how the expression on Law's face was contrasting with his own. While Luffy had a big smile on his face, clearly happy to see his friend again, Law continued... inexpressive, showing no sign that he was at least a little happy to see him. And that was bothering him.

"Well, it was nice to see you again, Luffy-ya, but I have to go now. Excuse me." Law said, quickly walking through Luffy without saying another word.

"What? Where are you going? We just started talking!" Luffy said, looking at the man, who was already far away from him, feeling a little disappointed. There were so many things he wanted to talk to him so much that he wanted to ask, but the other man didn't seem interested in talk to him.

"I see nothing for us to talk, Luffy-ya." Law replied coldly, not even looking at the boy who was left behind, while Luffy watched him in silence as he entered the hospital once again.

Luffy couldn't understand why the man was acting like that. When he recognized him, he thought that Law would feel the same joy he felt when he saw his friend, whom he hadn't seen for years, but he was wrong. He didn't recognize that person anymore, who seemed to have changed so much over the years.

He was cold, and distant... and he saw an emptiness in his eyes, something that was really bothering him.

But to Luffy it didn't matter how much the man had changed, he was still the person that he searched for all these years, he was still his friend, even if the other doesn't think about him in the same way, and he wouldn't give up on that person he wanted so badly to encounter for so long.

Luffy would keep insisting, until the day he could find a patch to his heart and life again.

No matter how much time it would take for him to find it.

* * *

 _I feel tired..._

Law opens the door and enters his apartment, feeling tiredness taking over his body and his mind.

He had decided to return home earlier, not being able to stay focused on work, all because of a certain person that reappeared in his life a few hours ago.

Luffy... As much as he wanted to deny, he had never forgotten that boy, who meant so much to him in his childhood. When everyone stayed away from him in fear of a rumor that wasn't true, Luffy was the one who had the courage to approach him. He understood the loneliness that Law felt, and always stood by his side, not caring if everyone would distance themselves from him because of that.

He really was a very special person.

If it was a while ago, he would be really happy to encounter the boy, and would love to recover all the time they have lost in these years they had been away from each other. But not now.

Not when he had already decided to never have anyone special in his life again.

Giving a sigh, Law enters his bedroom, and without even changing clothes, lays down on his bed, his mind being filled with painful thoughts and memories. Memories of how everything that he loved most was taken away from him in the worst ways possible. His parents, his little sister, who adored him so much... and also the person who saved his life, the person that had taken him away from the most desperate situation, and gave him a new chance to live.

"Cora-san ..." He felt a sharp pain in his chest as he remembered that man. Remembering him, thinking in how much he loved him to the point of sacrificing his life to save his own, still caused a great pain to him, even if many years had already passed.

That person was the light of his life, but someone took him away, leaving him in complete darkness.

It was from that day on that Law decided to completely close himself to the world. He had no desire to let anyone else get close to him, not wanting to suffer or to lose anything that was important to him again.

Not that anyone had ever tried to approach him.

Perhaps realizing that he had no desire to socialize with anyone, or afraid of his apparent insensitivity and sometimes rude behavior, everyone kept their distance from him.

This at least until the present day, when that boy from his past appeared in his life again.

Insisting on following him, talking to him, invading his personal space... he was the first person shown to have some interest in him in a long time. It was like what happened in his childhood was happening once again.

Encountering Luffy really surprised him, and he was honestly glad in seeing him again, but he decided that it would be better not to show it, hiding it behind a mask of indifference.

Hiding his feelings was something that he became really good at over the years.

He wanted to sit down and talk with him, to know what happened after all these years that had passed, to be close to his friend once again, but he just couldn't do it.

He wanted him in his life again, but in the end he pushed him away.

Despite the seemingly cold and distant person he had become, and even not really liking to admit, he felt really lonely. Even though he decided not to have anyone else in his life, he missed having someone by his side, someone to share his life and his feelings. But his traumas didn't allow him to have anyone else in his life.

Tired of thinking of so many depressing things, he closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep. He knew that he needed to sleep, something that he has barely been able to do lately, but what was already difficult before became an even more difficult task now, since he couldn't stop thinking about a certain boy, and that bright smile of his, something that he had never forgotten in all these years that had passed.

* * *

"Sabo!"

Luffy enters the house he was living with his brother hastily. He wanted to tell him what had happened and maybe ask for some advice, but when he saw that he had fallen asleep, probably waiting for him to come home, he decided not to bother him. Instead, he just sat down next to him in silence, lost in his thoughts.

He couldn't stop thinking about Law, and his encounter with him. Even though this encounter wasn't much pleasant, he was very happy to find his childhood friend again, to know that he was alive and well, even if the other man didn't seem to share the same happiness as he. He understood that the distance and the time could change the way that man saw him and felt for him, so he could understand the rather cold reaction that Law had. But still, there was something that bothered him.

The man was different from the person he had known as a child, and it wasn't because of his appearance. Taking the irritation that he was feeling at times, and which by the way was clearly visible ... he couldn't see anything. His face was inexpressive most of the time, and Luffy could see the emptiness in his eyes, something that bothered him a lot.

Luffy knew that was probably due to the trauma he suffered when he lost his family in that terrible incident that happened years ago, anyone would change after going through something like that. That made him really worried about Law, but he decided not to think about it too much, since he couldn't do nothing about it now, and focus on what he would do when they see each other again. And what he would do to get close to the man.

Luffy didn't know what to do and what would happen when he see the man again, but he could feel happiness growing inside of him and a smile appearing on his face in thinking that he would see the man again.

He fell asleep with that smile on his face, as memories of his childhood alongside Law occupied his mind.

Memories of how much he liked, and still like that man, even after so much time has passed. And how much this person was, and still is, so special to him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello!**

 **Uh... I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter, I had to rewrite it like... 5 times, so I don't know if it's good. Tell me what you think, okay?**

 **Thanks everyone for reading, for the favorites and follows.**

 **Special thanks to Neo Rulez, sarge1130, SEllen23, poyochin, Zatsune D. LawLuFan, daydreamfox and KuraKat123 for the kind reviews. They mean a lot.**

 **Bye!**

* * *

"Good morning Torao!"

Luffy looked at the man in front of him, greeting him in a very warm way and with a big smile on his face, only to be ignored again, since Law passed by his side without even looking at him. With a sigh, he just followed the man with his eyes until he disappeared from his sight.

It already became a routine for Luffy in the past days, he always tried to talk to the man, only to be ignored or to be interrupted by someone, so he didn't feel so bothered or unmotivated anymore. He was already used to it.

He sat on his bench nearby him, remembering all the days that he had tried to approach Law, but without success.

* * *

 _Luffy had found Law for the first time in years the day before, trying to approach him, but not being able to because the man didn't seem interested in even talking to him. But today was a new day, and he was confident that he would be able to get his attention._

 _Waking early, he made his way to the hospital, waiting for a certain person appears in front of him, something which didn't take too long to happen, since that was his workplace. Running up to him and stopping in front of him, he gave a big smile, glad to see the man again._

 _"Good morning Torao!" Luffy greets him excitedly, while the man looked at him with the same indifference from the previous day_

 _"You again, Luffy-ya? I thought you got the message yesterday."_

 _"I didn't get the message, and I don't want to. Don't think that I'll give up on you, because I won't!" Luffy says, feeling confident, prepared to insist the time it took to get a space in the surgeon's life._

 _"...Do whatever you want." Law said coldly, passing through Luffy without saying another word, leaving the boy behind as well as he did on the day before._

* * *

 _"Today is a good day ... a great day, and everything will work out." Luffy repeated it again and again as he watched a certain man from a safe distance, waiting for him to be alone to approach him._

 _When everyone left, he ran toward the man, hoping to be able to talk to him, but at that same time the man with the penguin hat came in his way._

 _"Doctor, is an emergency! Let's go!" He said, running into the hospital, being followed by Law, while Luffy just watched them, feeling disappointed._

 _"Today is not a good day ... and nothing worked."_

* * *

 _Luffy sat on a bench in the waiting room of the hospital, wearing a cap instead of his already known straw hat, hoping Law wouldn't recognize him. In the last two days the man had managed to avoid him, running away as soon as he could see, but today he would get the man by surprise._

 _Waiting patiently until the moment when the man passed through him, he got up to follow him, but when he was about to grab him by his shoulder he could feel someone pulling him back._

 _"Trying to run away again, sir Luffy? Your brother had warned me to keep an eye on you, so be nice and go into the doctor's room right now!" He heard a woman speaking angrily to him, dragging him into the doctor's room and practically throwing him inside of it, not letting him get in contact with Law._

 _And once again he had failed in approaching the man ..._

* * *

 _"Today everything will work out... I know it will ..." Luffy kept repeating that phrase again and again in his mind, while waiting for the doctor to leave his work._

 _It was already night, and Law hadn't yet left the hospital, and Luffy gets impressed by the amount of hours he worked by day._

 _It was as if he had no life beyond work._

 _After a long time of waiting, the man finally passed through the front door of the hospital, and Luffy gave a small smile when he saw him. Raising from the bench where he sat for hours, he gave a step towards the doctor, but was unable to give the second, since someone had grabbed his shirt._

 _"So you were here, Luffy! Do you know what time it is!?" Luffy immediately recognized that voice, it was his brother Sabo. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he had forgotten to tell his brother where he was, which apparently had left him very angry._

 _"Wait Sabo, just a minute! I was almost-" Luffy started trying to convince his brother to wait, but was interrupted by him._

 _"Not even another minute! We're going home now!" The older brother then grabs the younger by his shirt, dragging him away from there._

 _"S-Sabo wait! Sabooooo!"_

 _And so he was once again dragged away from Law before he could talk to him._

* * *

Luffy shakes his head, bringing his thoughts back to the present. He had tried every way he could think to approach the man, but not succeeding in any of them.

If trying to approach the man in simple ways, like he had been doing in the last days, wasn't working, he would have to try something different.

And it was then that an idea came to his mind _._

* * *

"Luffy, you're getting too obsessed with this man!"

Luffy closes his eyes, remembering the words that his brother Sabo told him when he told him about his new plan on how to approach Law. Sabo didn't like the idea, and disagreed with the plan, but that was nothing that would stop Luffy to get what he wanted.

Since Law wouldn't let the boy come into his life in the easy way, he was going to try on the hard way.

It was with this thought that he put his plan into action.

Determined to find anything that would help him to get into the man's life and heart, he began to follow him every day, looking for something he could use to approach him, whatever it was. But after watching him for a few days, he realized that it wouldn't be something easy to find.

Every day was the same, nothing changed in Law's routine. He went from home to work, from work to home. It was simple like that, he was always alone, never going out to have fun, seemed to remain in his place of work as much as he could, and only came home to sleep, which seemed he wasn't able to do for some time, since he had huge dark circles under his eyes.

And this strict routine that the man was following daily made discovering something different about him into something somewhat difficult. But Luffy didn't give up, and continued to follow the man day after day, waiting for something to change in his strict routine.

Something that finally happened on this day.

For some reason, Law had left the hospital earlier, something that had never happened in the days when Luffy was watching him, and the boy saw this as a good sign. Perhaps this was the chance he was waiting to discover something new about Law.

 _'Today I will discover something new, I know I will ...'_ The boy thought, optimistically, then following the man in the most discreet way possible.

Luffy noticed that the man was following a very different path from before, which meant he wasn't going home. Along the way, he saw him entering a place that looked like a floriculture, there buying the most beautiful flowers he could see, without worrying about the price. This attitude made Luffy think that man was going to a date or something like that, and that those flowers he would give to this mysterious person with whom he would meet.

Luffy couldn't understand why, but he didn't like the idea of Law having a date with someone. That meant that someone had managed to get the surgeon's attention, something that he couldn't do after all the days he was struggling to get it.

And to think that Law had someone special in his life made him feel ... weird.

' _Am I... jealous?'_ He asked himself, not knowing exactly what was making him feel so angry.

Lost in his thoughts, he hasn't even noticed when the man had left the place, only seeing him when he was almost lost sight of him. Deciding that now wasn't the time to think about those things, he got up and continued to follow Law, who continued to walk until he entered a cemetery, something that Luffy found very strange. _'People don't usually have dates in cemeteries, right?'_

He continued to watch the man as he walked among the graves for a few moments, until he stopped in front of a specific one, crouching in front of it and leaving above it the flowers he had just bought. At that moment the boy realized that he was wrong in thinking that the Law was going for a date, feeling foolish for being so angry because of something that wouldn't even happen.

More curious than ever, Luffy came closer to where the man was, watching him with all his attention.

Law then sat in front of the mysterious grave, a gentle smile appearing on his face, something that surprised Luffy. He hardly believes what he was seeing. In all those days when he was following Law, this was the first time that the boy saw him leaving his insensitive and indifferent façade, and show some kind of emotion. Seeing this, Luffy smiled in satisfaction.

He really was right in thinking that he would see something new about the man that day.

The boy then heard Law's voice, as he speaks something in front of the grave. Acting as if he was talking to a good friend, the man began to say all kinds of things. How he spends his days, the things that had happened, and in the middle of all these things, something that surprised Luffy.

"Cora-san, do you remember that boy which I told you that was the only friend that I had ever had? He appeared in front of me a few days ago ..." Law said, and Luffy didn't have to stop to think to know who the man was talking about. He was talking about him.

More surprised than ever, he approached a little more of where the man was, trying to hear more clearly what was being said, even if it was somewhat risky and if he wasn't careful he could easily be seen by the man.

"He hasn't changed a bit since the last time I saw him... he's still the same fool he was before. Fool enough to try to get close to me day after day, even though I repeatedly ignored him or said harsh words to him. I can't understand him ... that idiot ... "Law continued, and Luffy began to remember once again all of his failed attempts in trying to approach the man, and how he had failed in every single one of them. But that didn't really mattered now, so he went back to focusing on what Law was saying.

"... And I can't understand myself either ... don't understand why he and his annoying insistence in approaching me had moved me so much ... it's as if the past was repeating itself again." Law continued, and with that, Luffy was surprised beyond words. For all those days he had thought that all of his efforts in approaching the man had been in vain, but at that moment he realized that this wasn't the case. He had managed to awaken something in Law, and this was something that only strengthened his determination in getting a place into man's life again.

"But even if I feel like that, I can't..." Law then began to whisper, something that prevented Luffy to hear the rest of what he was saying, only getting to see his lips moving as he said something the boy couldn't understand.

Feeling frustrated at losing something that was probably important, he tried to approach even more of the man, even being in a position that was already too risky. Getting closer to the man step by step, he was approaching Law without him realizing it... at least until he bump into something.

Something that made a great noise, and called the surgeon's attention, exactly what he didn't want to happen.

Before he knew Law was looking directly at him, a look of surprise on his face, that in seconds turned into an of annoyance, making Luffy take a few steps back.

"You ... what are you doing here?" Law asked with a threatening tone in his voice, something that made Luffy want to hide anywhere that was far from man's vision. 'Damn, if I weren't so clumsy, this wouldn't be happening...'

"W-well, I..." Luffy started talking, trying to find some excuse to be there without telling the truth, as it could end his chances of approaching the man. "... I was passing by and then I saw you, then I've decided to tell you hi! Shishishi!" The boy then added, giving a forced laugh that probably didn't help in convincing Law.

"And staying hidden listening to what I was saying was part of me saying hi too?" Law asked, even more irritated, ignoring Luffy's explanation, since it was more than obvious that they were nothing more than a lie. The boy had always been a terrible liar, ever since when they were kids, and he knew that very well. "... You were following me, were not you?"

Luffy was silent for a while, realizing that Law wouldn't believe any lie he could say. Not knowing what else to say to justify his presence there, since lying wasn't really his forte, he then decided that to be honest and tell the truth to the man would be the best, even already expecting an unfriendly reaction from him.

"Y-yes, I was following you!" Luffy confessed to the man, looking at him, that still watching him with a really irritated look.

"You gave me no choice! I couldn't get close to you, since you always seemed to be avoiding me, so I've decided to follow you in silence, and so find something that I could use to get closer to you!" Luffy completed, ending confessing all his plan for the man, who just kept watching him in silence, looking a little surprised, and obviously angry.

Law didn't like when people tried to invade his privacy in any way, that was something that irritated him a lot, but there was something that softened his anger at that moment ... the surprise he felt at seeing that Luffy hadn't yet given up, and all the effort he was making to approach him.

He really couldn't understand him. He was always treating him badly, ignoring or avoiding him in every possible way, thus showing that he wanted nothing to do with the boy, but he still refused to give up, trying in every way to get his attention.

"... I don't understand you... why do you insist so much? Haven't you realized that I don't want to see you, and I don't want anything to do with you?" Law said, the expression on his face changing to a calmer one, something that surprised Luffy. He thought the man would get even angrier with him, shouting or even offending him in any way, but that's not what happened.

"... Isn't it obvious? I insist so much because I like you! You are my friend!" Luffy said honestly what he felt, surprising the man once more. He couldn't understand why Luffy had so much consideration for him as he hadn't seen him for years, and why he still has seen him as a friend even when he treated him so badly. None of it made sense to him, but the words that Luffy told really moved him somehow, and he could feel a strange feeling inside growing inside of him. But of course he would never show that to the boy, and once again would pretend to be indifferent to him and everything that he had said.

"Friend? Like me? Don't talk nonsense, we really were friends in our childhood, but this is something that's in the past." Law said coldly to Luffy, hiding his true thoughts and feelings behind an apparent indifference. "This is something that doesn't matter to me."

"...You're lying." Luffy said, not believing in what the man had told him. It didn't make any sense, after all that he had heard Law confess in front of that mysterious grave, so he couldn't believe what he said now was true.

He wouldn't let those words affect him.

"Lying? Where I'm lying, Luffy-ya?" He asks, confused at first, not knowing what Luffy was talking about, but then he remembered that he was being watched for some time by the boy, who probably heard everything that was being said by him, even the things he didn't want him to know. So it was kind of obvious that Luffy wouldn't easily believe in the lies he was telling.

"You say you want nothing to do with me, that our friendship doesn't matter to you ... but I heard what you said just now!" Luffy said to the man, confirming his suspicions. "You said that me and my all my insistence in approaching you really moved you, and you also never forgot the past! You must feel the same way as I feel then!" Luffy said confidently, glad to have heard at least a part of what the man had said, something he could use against what the Law was saying now, something that he really believed that were only lies.

"I've only said those things for saying, they mean nothing ..." Law whispered, feeling tired of arguing with the boy. Not wanting to prolong this uncomfortable situation in which he was placed, and not wanting to give more openings for Luffy to try to approach him, he stepped forward, starting to walk, passing through Luffy without saying another word. But before he could move on Luffy he grabbed him by his arm, not letting him give another step forward.

"I won't let you go now! I've spent years looking for you, you know, and I'm not giving up on you now that I found you!" Luffy then said, looking at the man's back. He was tired of always being left behind by the surgeon, and wouldn't let it happen again today.

Not now that he seemed to be so close to be able to get something from him. Not now that he knew his efforts and insistence in approaching him were not in vain. He would keep insisting until he got what he wanted.

"... Why won't you let me get closer to you? I don't understand ... is it asking too much to get a little of your attention?" Luffy says, not caring if it looked like he was begging for the man's attention. He really couldn't understand why Law was so reluctant to let him get close to him, as he himself had admitted that his efforts in approaching the man had moved him so much. He couldn't understand why he had become such a distant and sad person over the years.

Even knowing what had happened to his family, he felt there was one more reason for this change, and he had the feeling that the answer to that was that mysterious grave that Law had visited today.

Law remained silent, not knowing what else to do with the situation. He had tried all ways to get out of it, hoping that Luffy just give up, but deep down he knew that the boy would never give up until he got what he wanted, and tired of all that, he decided it would be better to give to Luffy what he wished. Give a bit of the attention that he so desperately wanted.

He thought there was no problem, since it would be something he would do just for a day. He would only go out with Luffy one day, hoping that like this he would stop following him to every corner, and insisting to get something from him. That didn't mean he would actually approach the boy, or create any kind of attachment to him, it would be just a casual meeting, nothing else.

Something that would only be for a day.

"... Alright, you win." Law said, finally giving up, and Luffy raised his head to look at him, obviously surprised. "If you want to go out to talk that much, I can see a day when I have time."

"R-really? Are you serious? For real?" Luffy asked him incredulously. He could hardly believe that Law had finally agreed to go out with him to talk after so many no's, after so many days of insistence without success.

"Of course, do you think that I'm lying?" Law question, and Luffy immediately shakes his head, not wanting the man to think wrong.

"No, it's not that! I'm just a little surprised!" Luffy says to the man, feeling really surprised and glad he decided to accept his invitation and go out with him. That was a good sign, a sign that he was finally getting to break the man's reluctance in approaching him. "Thank you,Torao!"

 _'You should thank your annoying insistence, Luffy-ya, not me.'_ Law thought honestly. If it were not for Luffy's annoying insistence, he would never have accepted going out with him.

"We will see one day, then, you know where to find me. Goodbye." Law said goodbye quickly, leaving the place and Luffy behind, somewhat relieved that the boy wasn't following him or trying to stop him.

He didn't have to look to Luffy to know the expression that he had on his face, he knew in that in his face, he would have that brilliant smile that he would always wear when he was happy, and for some reason thinking in that smile made a small smile appeared on his face as well.

As much as he tried to fight what he was feeling, he couldn't help feeling that little feeling of happiness that was growing inside of him in seeing how much Luffy genuinely liked him, even if it was something that didn't make much sense since he had been treating him in a not very friendly way lately. The boy really considered him a friend. It had been a long time since the last time someone had so much consideration for him, and this made him feel strange.

Meanwhile Luffy remained standing where he was, the biggest of smiles on his face as he watched the man until he could no longer see him. Then he turned his attention and his gaze to the grave that was next to him, in which Law had placed those flowers he had bought on his way there. Walking over to it, he bent down, watching it closely.

"Donquixote Rosinante ..." Luffy read the scriptures in the grave in front of him, his curiosity to know what that person was to Law increasing more and more with each passing second. It was clear that this mysterious person meant a lot to the man, judging by the way he was acting in front of this grave. And maybe that person was the key for him to know why Law had changed so much over the years.

But this was something with that he decided not to worry for now, as this was something he would only find out with time, and if he could get closer to Law. He knew it wouldn't be easy, since the man really had closed himself to the world, but he had managed to take the first step, and for now this was enough for him.

With time, he knew he would get Law to open his heart to him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hii! Here's chapter 4, that it took almost one month for me to write (I guess I can call this of writer's block, or something like that), but anyways, hope you all like it. :)**

 **Thanks for everyone who had been reading, for the favorites and follows. Super special thanks to SEllen23, Lionel Orlando, JustARatInACage, Neo Rulez, KuraKat123, sarge1130, and Yuu Hoshimura for the reviews, they are really appreciated! *gives cookies to everyone***

 **Till next time!**

* * *

 _'I'll be waiting for you, Torao!'_

Trafalgar Law gives a quick glance at his watch, while remembering the words of a certain boy. Seeing that it was already late, he started to organize his things to leave his workplace. Normally he would stay in the hospital until very late, since he could drown himself into his work and forget a lot of things that insisted on coming to his mind, only returning to his home because he knew he needed to sleep.

But today would be different, something made him change his rigid routine. Or better yet, someone did.

Today he would go out with an annoyingly insistent person, someone who had insisted for days and days in having his attention, in going out with him to talk, something that man initially dismissed to do, even if deep down he knew he also wanted spend some time next to his old friend. But in the end Luffy had won, and he ended up accepting his invitation. Maybe then the boy would be satisfied and would stop following him to every corner.

Giving one last look at the mirror and checking to see if he hadn't forgotten anything, he began to feel strangely anxious, perhaps because he wasn't used to going out with anyone, or perhaps because this someone he would go out with was Luffy.

Starting to walk toward the hospital exit, he takes a deep breath, preparing for whatever was going to happen in this encounter.

* * *

 _'He must be going out now...'_

Luffy stared at the hospital entrance, waiting of Law to go out of his work, feeling more anxious than ever to see the man. After days and days of insistence, Law finally accepted his invitation in going out with him, and he was feeling really happy with this. This would be the first chance he would actually have to approach the man, to be near him, and all that just made him feel more anxious.

He took his cell phone out of his pocket again to see what time it was, noticing then that there were several unread messages in it, all of them being of one same person.

 _"Luffy, be careful! Even this man was your childhood friend, I don't trust him, and you shouldn't trust him either."_

 _"Come back soon, you heard? And let me know when you're coming home so I can go get you."_

 _"Let me know where you are going and what time you will come home!"_

Luffy chuckled at how Sabo was so protective towards him, that reminding him of when he had told his brother about the first day he encountered Law at the hospital. At first Sabo was quite happy for him, since he seemed so excited and happy about it, but when he told him about the cold reaction from the man when he saw him, his brother started to get suspicious about Law. Whenever he could, Sabo accompanied him to the hospital, basically to observe the Law's behavior towards him, not liking what he saw.

Even if he insisted on saying to his brother that Law was a good person and that he shouldn't think ill of him, Sabo had the worst impressions of the man, saying that he was arrogant and that Luffy should stop running after someone treated him so badly.

And now that he was going out with the man, Sabo kept sending messages to him, telling him to be careful, and asking for all the details of what was happening.

Maybe someone else would be irritated by the excessive protection of his older brother, but for Luffy, it was quite the contrary, he was really happy to see how much Sabo loved him and cared about him. He had missed this in the years that they had been apart.

Putting his cell phone back into his pocket, he turned his eyes back to the hospital entrance, waiting for Law to appear, something that didn't take too long to happen. Giving a big smile, he ran toward the man, happy to see him again.

"Hey Torao!" Luffy called for Law, waving his arms so that he could see him, the man then looking at him while giving an almost imperceptible smile.

"Hello, Luffy-ya. Let's get going." Law greeted him politely, turning to walk and pointing forward indicating Luffy to follow him, something that he immediately did, accelerating his steps to avoid being left behind by the man.

As they walked Law remained silent, not knowing what to say, since he wasn't used to talk about anything that wasn't related to work, so Luffy was the first to break the silence.

"Do you know any good place to eat, Torao?" Luffy asked, looking curiously at Law, the latter continuing to walk, looking thoughtfully. Law didn't know many places, since he wasn't used to go out to eat, but he had heard some of his patients talking about fast food restaurants and other places selling unhealthy food, something that Luffy would definitely like.

"I've heard that there are some restaurants around here, you can choose in which of them you want to eat." Law answered, without looking at the boy. To him it didn't matter where or what they would eat, since he wasn't feeling hungry.

"Any place is good for me, all that matters to me is that I'll have your company!" Luffy said as he looked at Law with a big smile on his face. It really wasn't too concerned about food right now, since his attention was turned to the man beside him.

"You fool ..." Law whispered, turning his face away, not wanting Luffy saw the small smile that had appeared on his face, or noticed that he was a little embarrassed by the boy's answer.

They continued walking, Luffy saying the most various things to Law while he just listened without saying a word, until they stopped anywhere that had drawn the boy's attention to eat, Law being impressed with the huge amounts of food that Luffy consumed per minute. It was as if his stomach was bottomless. The man found himself wondering how the boy could remain thin eating these huge amounts of food. Luffy just stopped eating to speak with the surgeon, who was obviously not the type to talk a lot.

"You know some good places, Torao! For how long you have been living here?" The boy asked, curious to know more about Law. The man hesitated to answer, since he didn't like to give personal information, even if it was for someone who was once close to him, but he ended up responding anyway.

"Well, it's been some years since I came to live here." Law said, without giving many details, and he could see by the expression on Luffy's face that he wanted to know more. Not wanting to prolong his answer, he then tried to continue the conversation in another way.

"What about you? For how long have you been here?" He returned Luffy's question, not wanting him to insist on knowing more about him.

"Just a few days. I came here to spend time with my older brother. Actually, I live far away from here."

"Older brother? I didn't know you had brothers." Law said, finding it weird that the boy had siblings, since he never mentioned it to him, and he remembered that Luffy always told him that he was always alone and had no one to talk to where he lived.

"I really didn't have brothers, but now I do! We are not blood related, but that doesn't really matter to me. There is my older brother Sabo, with whom I am living now, and I haven't seen for years, and there's Ace too ... "Luffy then suddenly stopped talking, and Law couldn't help but notice how the expression on the boy's changed when he mentioned this other person called Ace.

"I mean, there was Ace, but he's no longer here... " Luffy finished, feeling sad as he remembered his brother, all tragic events that lead to his death coming back to his mind.

Noticing the change in the boy's expression, Law realized that something really serious had happened to this person, even though he didn't know what Luffy meant by he's no longer here. He admitted he was somewhat curious about it, but soon took those thoughts from his mind, deciding that this was something that was none of his business.

"I see..." Law replied curtly, not knowing what to say about it, and not wanting to prolong the subject.

Luffy then shook his head, trying to get the sad thoughts out of his mind. Rather than focus on them, he turned his attention to the man sitting across from him, not wanting to waste the time he had beside him, knowing that was his big chance to know more about him.

"So, tell me more about you, Torao! Tell me everything that happened in all those years that have passed." Luffy says excitedly, curious to know what had happened in the man's life while they were away from each other, and Law then already imagined what came ahead.

He knew the boy wouldn't rest until he knew every single detail of his life, and was already feeling tired of only imagining how much the boy would insist on knowing things that he probably wouldn't want to tell him.

He sighed, preparing himself for the thousands of questions that Luffy would do to him, anticipating that this would be a really long night.

* * *

' _It's already that late?'_

Luffy looked at the time on his cell phone, only then realizing how late it was. He was so distracted while talking to Law that he hadn't realized what time it was, he was so absorbed in the conversation that he hadn't even realized that his brother Sabo had called several times, and had sent several messages asking why he still wasn't at home.

If not for Law having warned him about what time it was, he probably would pass the whole night in the same place, telling his stories to the man without noticing the time passing.

Feeling a little disappointed by the time passing so fast while he was with Law, he got up from the place he occupied for some time, following the man to the exit of the restaurant where they had spent the last few hours together.

Even if he was a little sad at soon having to go different paths with Law, he was feeling happy for all the time and attention that Law had dedicated to him in the present day. They had spent hours next to each other, talking about all kinds of things, and even if Law were still reluctant to open up to the boy, Luffy felt that he was a little closer to the man, and this made him really happy .

As it was already late, Law offered to accompany him to his home, which he more than happily agreed, since it meant he could spend more time with the man. He wanted to extend the time that he would be close to the man as much as possible, since he didn't know when he would get another chance to be with him as now.

He knew it wouldn't be easy to convince Law go out with him again, since the man for some reason was still somewhat reluctant in allowing him to approach him.

There were still so many things he wanted to talk to Law, so much he wanted to know about him, but time was too short, and he still had to deal with man's resistance in speaking anything about himself. Luffy was feeling a little frustrated, having failed in taking of personal information about Law, since whenever he tried to ask something about the man he would give him very short answers, or would simply change the subject, but he knew that with time and insistence he would get all the answers he wanted, so he didn't bother much.

Rather than focus on frustrations, he decided to focus on the happiness that he was feeling at that moment.

He was really happy in being by the man's side, and even though he still remained a little closed to him, he could see several little things about him, things that made him realize that even though Law was different from before, he still had some characteristics of when he met him in his childhood. That only made him more confident that he would be able to get a place in his life again.

During all the way to his brother's house, Luffy walked as slowly as he could, taking advantage of Law's apparent distraction to observe him. He had changed a lot in all those years that he hadn't seen him, and he was sure that he wouldn't be able to recognize the man if he hadn't heard he say his name that day on the hospital. He had become a very tall, thin man, his skin was clear and showed no signs of the disease that he had on his childhood, and had several tattoos on his body that somehow perfectly matched him.

 _'He's really a beautiful man...'_ Luffy thought, while continuing to observe the man.

He could understand why people looked at him so much, this being something that Luffy had noticed in the present day, while he was having dinner with the man. He admitted that Law had become someone very attractive, but that was something that bothered him, since he didn't like the looks that some people were throwing at him while they were together. For some reason, he wanted to approach the man and do something to show that he was accompanied, making people stop to look at him that way.

He couldn't understand why he was feeling that way. It was like he was jealous of the man, and that feeling had left him confused.

"...Is there something in my face, Luffy-ya?" Law asked him, taking the boy away from his thoughts. He had realized that Luffy was staring at him for a while now, and that was bothering him.

"N-no, it's nothing!" Luffy replied, feeling somewhat embarrassed, not only by the man having realized that he was staring at him, but also because he was thinking a little too much about the man's appearance. He couldn't understand why, but he couldn't take his eyes from him.

Feeling suddenly nervous, Luffy lowered his head and kept walking silently next to Law, soon approaching the place where he was living with his brother, seeing that he was waiting for him sitting on the steps in front of the apartment complex. Law then stopped walking, not wanting to get in touch with that person, since he could see that he was looking at him in a threatening way, despite being somewhat distant from him.

"This is where I live, Torao! And that's my brother!" Luffy says excitedly, forgetting the nervousness he was feeling a few moments ago, pointing and waving to his brother, who returned the gesture, before turning back to look at Law in a not very nice way.

"I've imagined he was..." Law whispered, guessing that the man was Luffy's brother only by the very unfriendly way he was looking at him. He stepped back, prepared to withdraw from there before Luffy's brother even thought of approaching him. "That's it, Luffy-ya. Have a good night."

"What? Are you going already,Torao? Stay a little longer, we can talk more, and I have to introduce you to my brother!" Luffy turned to look at him, somewhat disappointed, wanting the man to stay a little longer, since they didn't have much time to spend next to each other.

"I... appreciate the invitation, but I really have to go now." Law replied as he glanced at Luffy's brother, who was still casting menacing glances at him, and that was more than reason for him to immediately decline Luffy's invitation and go away from there immediately. He didn't want in any way to enter in contact with that person.

"Ah ok ... Good night, Torao! Thank you for today, it was fun! Let's go out again!" Luffy looked at Law, giving the biggest smile that man had ever seen. He stepped forward, wanting to hug the man, but he remembered that the man didn't like being touched, giving up of the idea then.

"Good night." Law then said his last words to the boy before turning his back, heading toward his house, Luffy following him with his eyes until he couldn't see him anymore, then turning to look at his brother, eager to tell him stories of how was his day beside the man.

* * *

 _'What a weird feeling ...'_

Law closed his eyes, thinking about the strange sensation that he was feeling inside him. For some reason his heart and mind were feeling really light, something he didn't feel for a very long time.

And he knew it was because of a certain person he was feeling so well like that.

While remembering the hours he had spent beside Luffy, he could feel a little smile appearing on his face. He admitted that spend a part of his day beside the boy wasn't a bad experience, it was quite the contrary, it was something surprisingly pleasant. Even if he felt a little bothered sometimes, like when Luffy was trying to get personal information about him or when he had noticed that the boy was looking at him a little too much, he felt really good when he was by his side, and for many times in that night he had to resist the urge to smile and even laugh along with the boy, since his joy and cheerful attitude were so contagious.

For the first time in a long time, the feeling of loneliness that he always had within him completely disappeared, giving place to a feeling of comfort that he hadn't felt for a long time. Comfort in having someone to spend his time with, someone to talk to, even if it was about silliest and meaningless things. Comfort in having a certain someone beside him, someone who was so silly, and even annoying, but at the same time so kind and gentle.

It was a really good feeling. Even if he didn't want to admit, he liked having Luffy's company. He liked the boy's cheerful attitude, and his big, bright smile. He liked to talk to him and listen to his crazy stories that went from silliest things to even the most serious things. He liked the way Luffy seemed to appreciate so much his company, looking so happy just to be by his side.

It made him feel somehow special, and that felt really good.

He knew he shouldn't be feeling like that, knew that he shouldn't be feeling this great desire to be close to the boy again, to go out with him again, even if it was to hear the boy telling him his crazy stories all the time, but he couldn't help feeling that way.

And that was something that was worrying him.

This was something that went against his determination of not to get closer to anyone, not letting anyone get into his life. He knew that if he did, it would only cause him more pain, this being something that he learned due to all the tragedies that happened in his past, and he didn't want to ever go through anything like that again.

He didn't know if he would stand to lose anything else in his life, and that's exactly why he became this person who was so distant from everything and everyone.

At least until this lively and affectionate boy appeared back into his life from nowhere, and messed up with everything, thanks to his endless insistence in entering into his life once again. He lowered his guard and let Luffy get a little too close to him, and in only one day of convivence with the boy he could feel like he had created some sort attachment for him, and was even starting to feel something for him.

 _'I need to stop this now...'_ He thought, feeling like he needed to get away from the boy as soon as possible, knowing that this wouldn't be an easy thing to do. He had noticed that the boy wouldn't be satisfied with just a little of his attention, and would continue insisting on having a place in his life again, something he didn't know if he would be able to prevent him from doing.

He didn't know if he would be able to say no to Luffy when he asked to spend more time with him, to go out with him, because he knew that this was something that he also wanted to do.

And with that, he started to feel more worried than he had ever been.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hii! Here's chapter 5, hope you like it! :)**

 **As always, thanks for the favs and follows, and super thanks to 86fran, SEllen23, Neo Rulez, JustARatInACage and Lionel Orlando for the reviews! :)**

* * *

Trafalgar Law was tired. Tired wasn't even enough to describe what he was feeling now. Not being able to sleep in the night before, for having too many things in his mind, he could feel the tiredness taking over him, and for the first time he felt the need to out early from his job so he could get some rest, something that he probably wouldn't be able to do, since a certain person would come after him in the exact moment that he passed through the hospital's front doors.

The same person who has taking over his thoughts a little too much lately, like this making him being unable to have a good night's sleep.

It's already been a few weeks since he had agreed to go out with Luffy for the first time, hoping that like this the boy to leave him alone and would stop following him to every corner, asking for his attention, but that's not what happened. Luffy wasn't satisfied with just a little of attention from Law, he wanted more, and daily continued to go after him in the hospital, insisting that they should go out together again. He didn't have plans to accept any more invitations from the boy, but his insistence was so big that in the end he ended up saying yes to him. And the same thing continued to happen every single day after that.

Before he knew it, going out with Luffy had become an almost daily routine for him, for some reason he not being able to say no to the boy.

He had grown used to it, and that was something that began to really worry him, since he realized that the more time he spent next to Luffy, the more he found himself wanting his company. And as if that wasn't enough, he started having feelings for the boy, and to him, that had promised to never approach or have feelings for anyone again, this was something extremely worrying.

He became too attached to him, and that was exactly what he didn't want to happen, but that was something that he couldn't stop himself from doing. Luffy was too kind, too gentle, too caring, and all this made impossible for him to not to like him.

It was impossible to stop that little feeling he had for the boy to grow more with every single day that had passed, to the point of becoming something so strong that it was making him lose his sleep with worry.

For several times in the last days the thought of distancing himself from Luffy went through his mind, avoiding to get even more attached to him, preventing the feeling that he had for the boy to grow even further, and consequently being able to forget him over time, but he just couldn't turn his thoughts into actions.

He couldn't stay away from the boy, and this made his plan in getting away from him into something impossible to fulfill.

Taking a deep breath, Law began to pack up to go home, or better yet, to go to any other place where Luffy would drag him to, now for some feeling more anxious to see the boy than in previous days, feeling the strangest sensations because of him.

 _'What are you doing to me, Luffy-ya?'_

* * *

"Hey Torao!"

Luffy waved his arms away so that Law could see him, feeling very happy to see the man again, feeling that seemed to be reciprocal, since he could see that Law also gave a small smile when he saw him. Without thinking twice, he began to run toward the man, but stopped in the middle of the way, as he noticed the very tired look that the man had on his face.

He looked exhausted, as if he hadn't been able to sleep last night, the dark circles under his eyes being darker than he had ever been. That left him worried, wondering what could have happened to the man for him to be in that state. Slowly getting closer to him, he stopped in front of the man, his eyes filled with concern.

"Hello, Luffy-ya. Why are you looking at me like that?" Law asked, finding the expression on the boy's face somewhat unusual. It was clear that he was worried about him, and he could understand why, since he had looked at himself in the mirror before leaving, and saw the very tired expression that was clear on his face.

"Ah, it's just... you don't look so well, Torao. Did something happen?" Luffy asked, genuinely concerned about the man.

"... it's nothing, I just had a really tiring day." Law said, lying to the boy and waiting for him to accept his apology. He knew Luffy had this strange ability to know when people weren't being honest with him, but he just couldn't tell the truth to him. He couldn't just say that he was losing sleep because of him and because of what he felt for him.

"Are you sure? If you want, we can sit down and talk about it ..." Luffy kept insisting, not believing that it has been just a tiring day that had left Law like that. He seemed to be worried about something, and seemed that wasn't able to sleep too.

"Yes, I have. But thank you, Luffy-ya." He said the boy, giving him a small smile. This huge concern that Luffy had for him was one of the things that touched him the most, making him like the boy so much like he did.

"I see ..." Luffy smiled back, still feeling worried for the man. He really was in need of rest and of a good night's sleep, and Luffy knew that very well. "I think we better go out another day, you really need to rest, and to have a good night's sleep." Luffy added, feeling a little disappointed since he wanted to spend more time with the man today, but he understood that Law was exhausted, and it would be better if he could rest without being bothered.

"Yes, I think I really need it..." Law agreed with Luffy, since what he really wanted was to now go home and get some rest. But at the same time, he didn't want to dismiss Luffy's company. He wanted to spend more time next to the boy, and also knew that he would feel better in having him by his side. Then he had an idea. "... but if you want, you can come with me to where I live, I know it won't be fun and enjoyable as going out, but I can do something for us to eat."

At the same time that Law said that, Luffy left his expression of concern and gave his already known bright smile, all the disappointment that he felt for not being able to spend time with the man disappearing. It was the first time that the Law had invited him to go to his house, and it was also the first time that he felt that the man really wanted his company, despite being so exhausted, and this made him very happy.

"Really? I accept the invitation, then! Thanks, Torao!" Luffy says excitedly, wanting to jump on the man and give him a big hug, but had retained himself, since Law could change his mind if he did.

"It's nothing. Let's go." Law says, starting to walk and pointing to Luffy following him, but the boy remained standing in the same place, looking at him with a big smile on his face, Law then stops, turning to look at him. "... Something wrong, Luffy-ya?"

"Nothing really, I just wanted to tell you something." Law then kept looking at him, curious to know what he had to say. "... No matter where we are, everything is fun and enjoyable as long you're next to me." Luffy tells the man honestly, giving a small laugh at the surprised expression that Law had on his face, then finally running after the man.

Law then turned away from him, avoiding looking at the boy the rest of the way, feeling a strange sensation in his chest after hearing what Luffy told him, and a warm sensation in his cheeks.

Another strange feelings to join several others that Luffy was making him feel.

And one more reason for him to lose sleep for another day.

* * *

 _'Nothing here, and nothing here too ...'_

Luffy looked at all sides, as he walked through the apartment where Law lived, taking advantage of the man's distraction to observe the place.

As he waited hungry, for dinner that Law was making for them, he began to pay attention to every detail of the place, curious to find something that would help him to find out more things about the man, something that was a difficult task, since the place was pretty simple and there was nothing extravagant or that called his attention. Or at least that's what he thought. As he walked through the place, he saw something that made him very curious.

Hanging on the wall was a frame with a picture that seemed to be somewhat old in it. Approaching it to see who was in it, he could see two people. One he could recognize very well, it was Law, a bit older than the last time that Luffy had seen in his childhood, when he still had those white spots on his skin, that in the picture seemed to be covering almost his entire body. As for the person who was with him, Luffy had no idea of who that person might be, since he had never seen before.

It was an apparently really tall man, who wore makeup and strange clothes. He had a big smile on his face, which really contrasted with the expression on Law'sface, who seemed somewhat angry. Luffy thought of asking Law who was that person, since he was extremely curious to know who that person was and what he meant to him, but hesitated to ask since he knew that the man didn't like that he made personal questions to him. He then returned to the sofa where he was before and sat in silence, lost in his thoughts.

Law realized this change in Luffy's expression as he looked at him, and that he was too quiet for someone who was a chatterbox.

"Is there something wrong, Luffy-ya?" Law asks him, curious to know what had happened to leave the boy like that.

"O-oh, it's nothing, Torao." Luffy then replies, giving a big smile as he watched the big plate of food that Law had in his hands. He was still curious to know who that person was, but decided not to ask about it, not wanting to irritate the man or making him feel uncomfortable.

He didn't want to distance the man now that he had managed to get a little closer to him.

Luffy then decided to change the subject by focusing on the food that was being offered to him.

"Wow ... you're amazing, Torao! I didn't know you could cook as well!" Luffy said as he devoured everything he saw in front of him. Law really was a great cook, and the boy saw this as another reason to admire the man, whom he already found amazing.

"That's nothing really." Law replied, giving a small smile for compliment that the boy had given him, feeling genuinely glad to see that he could do something that had pleased the boy so much.

While they dined, Luffy once again fell into silence, something that Law was finding extremely odd, since he wouldn't stop talking even with his mouth full. Glancing at him, Law could see that he was once again thoughtfully, as if wondering about something.

"... if you want to ask something, you can ask it, Luffy-ya." Law says, already knowing what he probably wanted to ask him, since he had noticed that Luffy was curiously observing the picture that hung on the wall. It was clear he wanted to know who was the person next to him.

"Well, I saw the picture that hung on the wall, and I was curious to know what was that person next to you ..." Luffy said, confirming Law's suspicions. "But if you don't want to tell me it's okay ! I don't want you- "

"That man ... he was my benefactor." Law says, interrupting Luffy, beginning to tell what the boy wanted so much to know, he then stopped talking to listen to the man. He didn't know why, but he felt like he wanted to share his story with Luffy, something he had never shared with anyone before.

"He was a friend of my family, and after my parents were killed, it was he who took care of me." Law continued to tell his past, and Luffy finally discovered where his friend had gone to after the terrible incident where his parents had died. He had been taken away for someone. "It was he who cured me from my disease ..."

"I see, so that's why you no longer have those white spots on your skin ..." Luffy said, having noticed since the first time he found the man after all these years that he had no longer any white spots on his skin. Unconsciously, he stretched his arm, sliding his fingers lightly through Law's arm, noting that there was no sign of disease that he had one day. "Your skin is clean now..."

"Yes, I was saved by him ... in every way I can think of." Law said, giving a small smile at the memory of that person who meant so much for him, and to whom he owed so much.

That person, whom he missed so much.

"I see ... but where is this person now?" Luffy asked curiously. He initially thought he lived with Law or something, but quickly discarded the idea when he remembered that Law told him he lived alone.

"He's in that place where you followed me that day ... or at least what remains of him. His name was Donquixote Rosinante." When Law said that, Luffy immediately understood what the man was talking about.

He was talking about that day when he had followed the him to the cemetery where he went to visit the mysterious grave, and the boy finally understood who of who that grave was. It was of Law's benefactor, which meant that the man was dead.

"Oh ... I'm so sorry, Torao, I shouldn't have asked anything!" Luffy then apologized in a little desperate way, while noticing the change in the man's expression, feeling really bad for asking something that probably shouldn't.

"It's okay, there's no need to apologize. I just felt like I wanted to share it with you." Law said, and Luffy was surprised by that, feeling the little desperation that he was feeling melt away, being replaced with happiness. He didn't expect that Law wanted to share his past with him, especially because it was something painful to remember, but he did and Luffy could feel that man really trusted him, that he was finally managing to get a place in the man's life.

"Torao... if you don't mind me asking ... what happened to him?" Luffy asked hesitantly, knowing that this was probably a sore subject to the man, but still wanting to know every detail of what happened. He wanted to get this opportunity to know everything about Law.

"... he was killed while trying to save me ... was killed by own brother." Law started to tell Luffy what happened, while feeling a stabbing pain on his chest. Even if he reminded every single day about what happened in the past, some reason talking about it made it be more painful.

"He was killed by own brother? But why? How can someone do something like that?" Luffy was frightened by this idea of a brother taking the life of another. He couldn't understand how someone could do something like that, when he could even imagine himself causing any kind of harm to his brothers, whom he loved so much.

"Doflamingo was a monster, Luffy-ya, and when he discovered that Cora-san wanted to steal the drugs that he had gotten in the black market in order to cure me, he had gone crazy. He only thought about the prejudice he would have if he did, that's why... he had killed him." Law continuated, feeling a deep hatred growing inside of him. He had always hated Doflamingo, ever since the first time he had contact with him. That was something horrible about that man, something that he could feel just by getting close to him. And that hatred only grew after what he did to Corazón, to the point that he just wanted to kill that man.

"He managed to give me the drugs, I was cured from my disease and escaped alive of all that, but Cora-san ... he was killed in front of my eyes, and I couldn't do nothing about it." Law said with a painful expression on his face, Luffy looking closely at him, clearly surprised. He had never seen showing so much emotion before, all of them being not good ones, and he was more concerned with the man than he had ever been.

"Torao ..."

"I was saved, but at a too high price. I've lost the most important person for me ... and once again I was left alone in the world." Law then finished, falling into silence, feeling great pain in his chest as he remembered all that he had lost that day, and in all his life.

Pain that Luffy could see clearly on the man's face. He began to think about how long the man had kept these things inside, probably having no one with whom to share it. How long the man had suffered in silence, without having anyone to comfort him.

He wanted to do something, anything to make him feel better, to make him see that he was no longer alone, but then his mind became filled with memories of what happened to his brother, Law's story making the memories that tragic day return to his mind again with full force. The pain he saw stamped on the man's face ... he knew that pain too well. He knew the pain of losing someone you love, so he could relate man's pain to his own.

"... I understand how you feel, Torao. I also lost the most important person to me ..." Luffy said, starting to share his past with the man, showing like that that he could understand what Law had gone though "My brother, Ace, he also died before my eyes ..."

Upon hearing that, Law could finally understand why the expression on the boy's face always changed when he talked about that person called Ace, and also what he meant when he spoke that person had gone to a faraway place. He looked at the boy, forgetting his own pain and memories for a moment, and started feeling concerned about the boy, seeing that his eyes started to be filled with tears.

"I tried to save him, but I couldn't do anything ... so I know how you feel... I..." Luffy said while remembering the moment that his brother was gone forever from his life, but wasn't able to finish what he was saying, the tears that were filling his eyes beginning to fall, he then quickly took his arm to them, trying to wipe them out before Law the see them. That wasn't what he wanted to happen, he wanted to do something to comfort Law and not to cause more problems for him, but when he started talking about Ace the memories of that tragic day came back to his mind like never before, and he couldn't help but being moved by them.

Luffy was so lost in his thoughts and memories that didn't even noticed when Law had approached him, only realizing it when the man grabbed his arm, pulling it away from his eyes. The boy then looked at him then, surprised with the kind and worried expression on Law's face.

"I'm sorry, Torao... I didn't wanted to-" Luffy started talking as he tried to compose himself, but was interrupted by Law, the man placing his arms around him and giving him a tight hug, catching the boy by surprise. He froze for a moment, obviously not expecting that reaction from the man, since he had never showed so much affection for him before. Without thinking much about it, he returned the hug that the man was giving him, letting the tears that were filling his eyes to fall free then.

"It's okay, Luffy-ya ... you don't need to apologize." Law tells Luffy, tightening his arms a little more around the boy as he tried to comfort him. He looked so sad and lost, something that Law never expected to see, since the boy was always so happy and smiling so widely, but he could understand very well why the boy was like this. He had gone through a similar experience to that the boy had though, so he knew how painful it was. Perhaps it was because he related his pain to Luffy's that he was acting like he was now, approaching Luffy so much, and being so caring and gentle.

He kept thinking that, trying to find a reason to why he was acting like that toward the boy now, but deep down he could tell that he wasn't acting the way he was only for sympathy. He knew that what was really making him acting like that were the feelings that he had for Luffy... feelings that he could no longer deny that he had.

Not after all the days he had spent by the boy's side, after all the laughs and smiles that he had gotten out of him. After all the displays of affection that the boy had given him, of all the words and caring gestures.

Not now, he had opened the boy to the point of telling him about his past, something he had never told anyone, and now that he was with the boy in his arms, being so close to him that he was finding hard to breathe, his heart beating crazily in his chest.

He could no longer deny that Luffy had awakened a very strong feeling inside him, a kind of affection he had never felt for anyone before. It was different from the affection he felt for his family or Corazón, so initially he felt lost, not knowing what that feeling was. Then he started to think about the past, more specifically a really pointless conversation he had with Corazón.

A conversation they had about feelings, specifically about a specific one. He could still hear the man's voice in his mind as he described him how being in love felt like, insisting that this was something he should know, since one day he would ever feel like that for someone. At the time he had completely discarded this possibility, saying that he would never feel like that for anyone, but now he saw how wrong he was, and how much Corazon was right.

All the feelings and sensations that he was feeling for Luffy in recent days, and especially that he was feeling now ... they were the same as the ones that Corazon had described him in that day, all those years ago. And that could only mean one thing ...

 _'If all that was true, that can only mean that... I'm in love with Luffy-ya.'_ Law thought, frightened by the conclusion which he had come to. As much as he knew that he had feelings for the boy, he could never imagine that these feelings went so deep like that.

And with that, he could feel the fear he already had due to the attachment that he had created for Luffy increase much more.

Immediately, he began to think of all the reasons why he shouldn't feel like that for Luffy, since he would be risking himself to go through more pain. He began to remember what happened to all everyone that he ever loved, in how all of them were taken from his life in the worst possible ways, and began to think that the same could happen to Luffy. And he knew he wouldn't stand to go through the same pain he felt in his past once again.

This, aside the risk of being rejected by the boy.

Law was sure that Luffy didn't feel and would never feel the same for him, the boy being so innocent that he doubted that he even knew what it meant to be in love with someone. He knew that he only saw him as a friend, or perhaps even see him the same way he saw his brothers, and that meant that if he ever said to Luffy how he felt about him, he would only be rejected, and would end up with a broken heart.

He didn't want none of that happened, he didn't want to go through more pain than had already did, so he made a decision, one that he didn't want to make.

 _'I have to stay away from him, to take him away from my life. I need to do this, or else-'_

"... Torao? Torao!" Law was taken abruptly from his thoughts when he heard Luffy calling him, the boy moving away a little so he could look at him, a really concerned look on his face. "What happened? Are you okay?"

Law then took a deep breath, trying to calm down and recover from the shock he had when he realized what he felt for the boy in front of him, but he was having a really difficult time in doing so, when Luffy was looking so intently into his eyes. And the more he looked at those eyes, the more nervous he felt. He quickly turned his face, not wanting that the boy saw how nervous he was, his heart beating faster than ever.

"I'm fine, Luffy-ya ..." I replied shortly, hoping that Luffy wouldn't question him further.

Even if he had told Luffy that he was fine, he knew that he wasn't. He wasn't all right at all. He was feeling strange and his mind was confused. He was so confused and lost in his thoughts that he almost forgot how the boy in front of him was feeling. He then tried to take all those confused thoughts from his mind even if it was for a moment, focusing on the concern he was feeling for Luffy.

"... but what about you, Luffy-ya ... are you okay?" Law then turned his face to look at him, clearly worried. He realized that Luffy still had some tears in his eyes, and he looked so sad and tired. That was the first time that Law had seen Luffy like that, and he didn't like it. That look didn't fit the boy, who was always so cheerful and happy.

"I'll be fine .." Luffy assured him, happy to see that Law was genuinely worried about and cared about him. "I feel better now, thanks to you. Thank you, Torao." The boy then gave a small, gentle smile, and Law could feel a small smile appear on his face as well. Listening to Luffy saying that, and seeing that he managed to make him feel better made him really happy.

"... But you weren't listening to anything I said just now, right? So I'm a little mad at you right now." Luffy said playfully, rolling his eyes like he was really mad at him. "It was important, you know ..."

"I'm sorry, I really wasn't listening... can you say it again?" Law apologized, admitting that he wasn't really paying attention to what the boy was the saying. He hasn't even noticed that the boy was saying something to him, since he was too lost in his thoughts to pay attention to anything around him.

"... well, I said ..." Luffy started repeating what he had said, this time having a bit of difficulty. He didn't know why, but now that man's attention was all on him, he was feeling a little nervous, or maybe the more correct word would be embarrassed, to repeat what he had said.

"... You said that you were left alone in the world before, but ... you don't need to feel alone, Torao. You have me now, and if you allow me to stay by your side, I promise that I will never leave ... "Luffy ended, a small smile on his face, looking at the man surprised expression, as he waited for any kind of answer for him.

Answer that didn't come, since Law didn't know what to say to the boy, or what to think. He opened his mouth, but no words came out of it. Listening to Luffy to say those words left him speechless. This wasn't the first time that Luffy had managed to do that, for quite some time he had left him without words, but it was always because of the nonsense things that he would say to him, things that he had nothing to say about it.

But this time he left him speechless for a completely different reason. He couldn't say anything because he was too moved by Luffy's words... and because he didn't know what to say to the boy. He had found himself in a great dilemma.

He knew that he wanted to stay by the boy's side, and he wanted it too much. What Luffy said made him think of how nice it would be if all the days he spend by the boy's side could repeat themselves for the rest of his life. But then all kinds of bad memories and pessimistic thoughts started to take over his mind.

Memories of the last time that someone promised to never leave his side, and on how this promise was broken, even if it was against that person's will.

Corazón... he also promised to never leave him once, and look how everything ended... the man was gone from his life forever, and left him behind with this almost unbearable pain inside of him, a pain that he knew that would never go away. It wasn't like he blamed him, since he knew that it wasn't his fault. He didn't want to leave his life, his parents and his little sister also didn't, but they had been taken away from him for reasons that were beyond their control.

And the same could happen to Luffy as well, this being his greatest fear. A fear that was even greater than the one of being rejected by him.

He turned his attention back to the boy that was in front of him, he starting to have a little of difficulty in seeing him, due to the tears that started to gather in his eyes. Before the boy could see them, he put his arms around him again and pulled him into a tight, affectionate hug, one that the boy immediately returned.

One that left the boy confused.

Luffy didn't know what to think about that, he was waiting for a answer from the man, but he didn't say anything at all, he spacing out after what he had said, and then putting him into his arms once again. He really didn't know what to think about that, but it felt really good. Law had never acted so affectionately towards him before, and it made him think that Law really wanted to stand by his side, even if he hadn't said it to him in words. Feeling happiness growing inside of him, he rested his head against the man's chest, starting to feel sleepy all of sudden.

Maybe it was because of the tiredness that he was feeling now, after all the memories that were filling his mind and all the tears that he had shed. Or maybe it was because of the comfort the he was feeling now, he was being embraced in such affectionate way by the person that he liked so much... the person that he wanted to always have by his side.

While thinking about his feelings for the man, Luffy ended up falling asleep into his arms, Law noticing that when he looked down to look at the boy, who was muttering some nonsense in his sleep. He distanced himself from him to look at him better, noticing that he had a really peaceful expression on his face, something that relieved him. He took his hand to his cheek, stoking it lightly with the tip of his fingers, thinking about how cute the boy looked while he was asleep, while feeling a really warm sensation on his chest.

He loved that boy, he really loved him... but no matter how much he could be loving him, he knew he couldn't continue with this. If he did, something bad would happen, and he would only hurt himself. And that was something that he really didn't want to happen.

Then, feeling more sad than he had ever been, he finally opened his mouth, whispering to the boy the answer that he didn't want to give him, but that he had to give.

"I'm sorry... I really wanted to have you always by my side, Luffy-ya, I really did, but ... this can't happen... I'm sorry."


	6. Chapter 6

**Hiii! Here's chapter 6, hope you guys like it! :)**

 **As always, thanks for the favs and follows and everyone who reads this fanfic!**

 **Special thanks to SEllen23, slothed crow, JustARatInACage, poyochin, Lionel Orlando, daydreamfox and sarge1130 for the kind reviews, they mean a lot and are very much appreciated. :)**

 **See you guys in the next/last chapter!**

* * *

Luffy opened his eyes, or at least tried to, since a strong light coming from the window was preventing him from doing so. Sensing a big headache, he looked at the surroundings, trying to find out where he was, which wasn't too hard to figure out, since there was a very familiar person watching him closely.

"Good morning, sleepyhead. How do you feel?" Sabo asked his brother, clearly worried about him. Sabo had been waiting for his brother to wake up for a while, wondering exactly what had happened while he was with Law yesterday.

Even if the man had told him in a very resumed way what had happened, he didn't trust completely in his words. As much as his brother liked the man and insisted that he was a good person, Sabo was never able to like that man or have any kind or sympathy for him, let alone that he looked really suspicious and he didn't trust him not even a bit.

"What happened? My head hurts ..." Luffy takes a hand to his head, trying to remember the events of the past day.

"It's me who have to ask you that, Luffy." Sabo said, waiting for a very good explanation from his brother.

Luffy closed his eyes then, and began to remember what had happened. He had gone to the hospital to meet with Law, the man unexpectedly inviting him to dine with him at his home. Once there he had seen a picture of a strange man, and when he asked Law who that person was he ended up sharing his tragic past with him. A past that made him remember what had happened to his brother, and so he started crying. Law then approached him and hugged him, trying to comfort him, and he ended up falling asleep in the surgeon's arms.

 _'Torao ...'_ As he recalled what had happened, Luffy could feel a strange sensation in his chest and stomach, a smile beginning to appear on his face. Law had been so nice to him on the previous day, that being the first time he really felt close to man, and that he had actually showed to have affection for him, and that made him happier than he had ever been.

"...Where's Torao?" Luffy asked his brother, who probably knew what had happened after he fell asleep. After all, he was at his home, not in Law's.

"I don't know, he brought you here last night, then went away." Sabo explained to his brother, the boy then understanding how he got in his house.

"Luffy, please be honest ... what happened yesterday?" Sabo then asks, clearly worried, and Luffy begins to narrate what had happened to his brother, since the moment he had met with Law until the moment he had fallen asleep in his arms.

The older brother then sighs, feeling more relieved to see that the story that the man had told him before was conferring with Luffy's, meaning that it was true. But as he took one worry out of his mind, another one appeared, this one much bigger than the last.

And it was all because of the way Luffy talked about Law.

As he explained to him what happened, Luffy smiled at the mere mention of the man's name. And while he told him so happy about how much the man had approached him and how close had he felt to him, his eyes sparkled, and Sabo could see an expression he had never seen on his brother's face before. Aside from the fact that he had shared the painful memories of Ace's death, something that he had never shared with anyone other than himself.

It was as if Luffy was ... in love with the man, and just thinking about it made him want to tear his hair out of his head in concern.

"Luffy, tell me something ... what you feel for that man?" Sabo question his brother, obviously worried, perhaps for already knowing the answer that his brother would give him.

"I ..." Luffy started to speak, but then fell silent, for the first time seriously thinking about what he felt for Law. He knew he really liked the man, but what happened yesterday made him realize that what he felt for him was way more than just a simple like. He already had a crush on someone, and what he was feeling for Law reminded him of that feeling, but this... this went way beyond just a simple crush.

"I ... don't really know, Sabo. I thought I just liked him, that I've seen him just as a good friend, but now that I think of what happened... I see that it wasn't that." Luffy starts to describe his feelings, and Sabo could feel his worry growing with each passing second. "... my tummy is all weird, and my chest too... what does this mean, Sabo?" Luffy then asked his brother, confused for all those weird feelings that he was having because of the man, and Sabo didn't know what to do.

He wanted to tell him something like, oh you're just sick or you just ate something that you shouldn't, since Luffy most probably would believe in anything that he would say, but for more that he wanted, he couldn't lie to his little brother. He just couldn't do it.

"Listen Luffy... this is something really serious. Are you sure you are feeling all these things?" Sabo asked one last time, hoping that Luffy would just say to him that he was mistaken or something, but he knew that, unfortunately, that wasn't the case.

"Yes, I am..." Luffy replied, and Sabo saw that he had no other option but to explain what that meant.

He moved closer to Luffy and sat down by his side, looking seriously at his brother's eyes as he started to explain things to him.

"All these things that you're feeling... they mean that you're in love." Sabo explained, and Luffy's eyes widened a little, meaning that he probably at least had an idea of what that meant. "Do you know what it means to be in love?"

Sabo asked, and Lufy started to think deeply about it, remembering some things that he had heard about the subject. Sanji, Nami, Robin and his brother Ace once talked to him about that, but he never gave much attention to it. But he gave enough attention to remember some things.

"I guess... being in love is when someone becomes the most special person to you, and you can't stop thinking about that person and you want to stay beside her always." Luffy described what he had heard about it to his brother, only then realizing that he was feeling exactly those things he had talked about. And that meant that he was trully in love with the man, like Sabo said.

"Yeah... that's basically it." Sabo confirmed, not knowing what else to say about it. He had too much worry on his mind to say anything else.

Both them fell in silence, Luffy thinking about his newfound feelings for Law. Those feelings... they felt really good, and he felt an irresistible urge to see the man, to hold him tightly and to tell him all the feelings that he had for him.

"I... I need to see him." Luffy said, preparing himself to get up and go after the man, but Sabo grabbed him by his arm, stopping him from doing it.

"Wait wait wait, where do you think you're going? You're not planing on telling him that you love him, right?" Sabo asked, extremely worried. He knew that his little brother used to just go to people and tell them what's on his mind, and this wasn't good. Especially when he had no idea of what that man felt for him.

"Yes, I am, I need to tell him what I feel and-" Luffy tried to explain, but was interrupted by Sabo.

"No Luffy, you shouldn't do that! Look, do you even know if that man feels something for you?" Sabo asked, while trying to stop Luffy. If he didn't, Luffy would just risk himself to get hurt by being rejected.

"I don't know, he had never told me anything... but yesterday he was so caring and gentle, so he must feel something for me too!" Luffy affirmed, feeling confident that Law felt something special for him too.

"Must feel isn't enough, Luffy! Look, if you want to go see that man, all right go ahead, but you definitely shouldn't tell him what you feel until you're certain that he feel the same for you, got it?" Sabo told him, hoping that his brother would just understand and follow his advice.

He didn't want that his little brother ended up with a broken heart. If he did, he would probably want to kill that man, Luffy loving him or not.

"Okay, I get it Sabo, so don't worry, okay?" Luffy said, giving his brother a big smile and a tight hug, happy to see that his brother was so worried about him, even if he didn't want him to be.

"Okaaaay I will try to not to worry." Sabo replied, returning his brother's hug shortly. "But it's hard not to worry when I have a troublesome little brother like you."

"Sorryyy! Shi shi shi!" Luffy laughed, distancing himself from his brother as he got up and prepared himself to go after Law.

The whole time, Sabo watched him with worried eyes, hoping that he wouldn't just have his heart broken by loving someone who didn't love him back. He knew he was still hurting because of what happened to their brother, even if he didn't tell him anything, and the last thing that he wanted was that he had to go through any more pain. He didn't know what Luffy's reaction would be, and that was what worried him the most.

As he watched his little brother leaving the house that they shared, he sincerely wished that Law had the same feelings that Luffy did for him, even if he didn't like the man. He could see that he had some sort of affection for his brother, that being something that he saw in the way he looked at him when he brought his brother home last night, but he didn't know what kind of affection it was.

Independent of that, he just hoped that the man didn't hurt his brother, or he would have to go after a certain someone, and not for a good reason.

* * *

 _'He must be here soon...'_ Law thought, as he gave one quick look at his wristwatch.

He already expected Luffy to show up anytime, as he did every single day, insisting that they should go out after he got out of the hospital. But today, unlike all the other days, he wouldn't accept his invitation, no matter how Luffy insisted.

Today he would put an end to they called friendship, that for him it became way more than that. He had involved himself too much with the boy, had created feelings that he shouldn't feel, and that's why he decided that he should take Luffy away from his life, no matter how difficult would do that be.

Walking to the hospital entrance, he sat on a bench nearby it, the place where Luffy always used to wait for him to come out of his work, as he prepared himself to face the insistence that he already knew it would come from the boy. But more than his insistence, he was preparing himself to suppress his desires and feelings, something that would be much more difficult to do.

He closed his eyes, thinking in how would be his days without the cheerful boy by his side. How it would be to go out of work and not see the boy waiting for him outside the hospital, making plans on how they would spend the rest of the day together, or where would they go to on Law's day off. How it would be not seeing his big smile, or to receive his surprise hugs. He would just go back to his usual sad, lonely routine, and thinking about that made him feel a painful sensation on his chest.

He was going to push Luffy away from his life in order to protect himself from going through any more pain, but he knew that doing so would be painful to him as well, and this was something that he had no way of protecting himself from.

And he didn't know what to do about it.

While Law was lost in his thoughts, a certain boy watched him from afar with worried eyes. Luffy had reached the hospital only a few moments ago, coming early as always to wait for Law to go out from his work, but when he was going to his usual spot he could see that the man was already there, something that worried him a little, since he thought that something could have happened for Law to go out earlier from work. Worry that only grew when he got closer to him, seeing the sad expression on his face, and the lonely tear the was running down his cheek, he then realizing that something was wrong.

Without thinking twice, he ran towards the man, kneeling in front of him, reaching out and taking his hands on his own.

"...Torao?" Luffy called out for him, trying to take the man away from the obviously painful thoughts that were filling his mind. Something that he managed to do as Law opened his eyes to look at him, a few unshed tears still filling them. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"O-oh, hello Luffy-ya." Law greeted him politely, a little surprised, since he didn't notice that Luffy was right in front of him until the moment when he called out for him, since he was too lost in his thoughts to play attention to anything else. Quickly he took one hand away from Luffy's and wiped the tear that had fallen from his eye. "I'm not crying, my eyes are just irritated."

"... you're lying. You look sad, and it seems that you were thinking in something bad... just tell me what's wrong, maybe I can help." Luffy said, not buying Law's explanation, since it was so obvious that it was a lie. He knew that there was something wrong there, and he could see that just looking at him, he just didn't know why he was hiding it from him.

"I already told you, I'm not crying, and there's nothing wrong either..." Law insisted, hoping that this time Luffy would just believe in him and drop the subject. He obviously couldn't tell Luffy what was wrong, he wouldn't just look at him and say yes i'm sad and i'm crying because I'm going to push you away from my life and that hurts too damn much, so he just found an lame excuse and hope that Luffy would buy it, something that he so obviously didn't.

But at least Luffy stayed quiet for a while, and that relieved him a little.

"... If you don't want to tell me, it's okay... but at least let me do something to make you feel better." Luffy said, breaking the silence, giving up knowing what was wrong, since he didn't want to irritate Law, but he at least wanted to do something to comfort him somehow.

"And what would that be?" Law asked, doubting that the boy could do anything to make him feel better. Nothing could make him feel better now, but still he didn't stop the boy in his attempt at doing so, and just stayed watching Luffy as he let go of his hand and got closer to him, putting his arms around him, giving him a tight, warm hug, and at the same moment Law knew that should just push the boy away from him.

He knew that he should, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. He knew that would probably be the last time that he would receive that hug, so he just couldn't push him away. Instead, he just put his arms around Luffy and held him close to him, closing his eyes while wishing that he could always be close to the boy like he was now, but knowing that he shouldn't, that he couldn't.

He couldn't, so he just decided to enjoy that little moment that they were having while it lasted, his arms tightening around Luffy a little more, his head resting in the crook of his neck, and Luffy got himself surprised.

He was surprised by Law's reaction, since he expected for the man to just shove him away from him, but he didn't do it. Instead, he just held him close to him, so close that it was hard to breath. They had already been close like this in the previous day, Law already had held him close to him, but that felt so different... it was more affectionate, and then Luffy could feel hope growing inside of him.

Hope that maybe, just maybe, Law felt the same way as he did for him, that he had the same feelings that he had for him, and that made him happy. So happy that those three little words that were on his head, the words that his brother told him that he shouldn't say to him, almost slipped from the tip of his tongue.

But he didn't let them, he didn't want to jump into conclusions yet, so he decided to concentrate himself in the worry that he was feeling for the man.

"Are you feeling better, Torao?" Luffy asked Law after a while, distancing himself from the man so he could look at him, feeling relieved as he nodded in agreement, a calm expression on his face, the smallest of the smiles on his lips.

An expression that soon changed into something completely different, a smile that disappeared from his lips, and that was something that made Luffy worried.

"... What's wrong, Torao?" Luffy asked, feeling more and more worried as he looked at the man's face, seeing something that he didn't want to see there. The expression on Law's face... it resembled the one that he always used to wear when he had met the man for the first time in years, the one that he had before he opened up to him. And this couldn't be good.

"Luffy-ya ... I want to ask something of you." Law said, a serious tone and his voice, something that scared Luffy a bit. The man always talked seriously, but not like now, not like this, an that was something that left him speechless. "I... don't want you to come after me anymore. I want you to stay away from me." The man added, and Luffy widened a little, that being the last thing he wanted, and expected to hear.

If it wasn't too long ago, he would find it normal for Law say something like that, but not now.

Not now, when they were getting so close to each other, not after what happened on the previous day. Not when he was feeling that he had earned himself a place in the man's life, and that he felt like maybe, just maybe, there was something special between them.

Something special that he swore that he could feel a moment ago, when the man had held him so close, so affectionately...

What in the world happening?

"... What? But why?" Luffy asked, not understanding what was happening, why that was happening. Law was pushing him away from him again, pushing him away from his life, and he couldn't understand why, he just couldn't.

"Because I don't want to see you anymore, Luffy-ya." Law said, turning his face, unable to look at the boy as he said those words. It was so difficult for him to say those things to him, so difficult that he was afraid that the boy could see in his face that he was lying. Something that he so obviously, at least for him, was doing.

That wasn't what he wanted, he didn't wanted Luffy to be away from him, he really didn't. On the contrary, he wanted him always by his side, he really did, but he was so convinced that something bad would happen if he did, that he would end up feeling the same pain that he did so many times in his life before, something that he wouldn't bear to feel again, that he just couldn't allow that to happen.

He couldn't get the risk of losing anything else in his life, and that's why he was so adamant in his decision.

"... but why, Torao? What did I do wrong?" Luffy insisted, feeling more lost than he ever did. He started to think of all the reasons that the man was acting like that, all that happened that could have changed things between them so much, and he couldn't help but to think of what happened on the previous day, and of course, this could only have something to do with what happened then, he couldn't find any other reason for that. "... Is it because of what happened yesterday?"

Luffy asked and waited for an answer, he really waited, but Law just said nothing to him, he just stayed in silence, and the boy took his silence as a confirmation of his suspicions.

"... I'm sorry, Torao." Luffy whispered, immediately starting to think on all the things that he could have done to irritate the man, to the man to be acting like that, and one thing came to his mind then.

Maybe it was his curiosity that led to this whole situation.

Maybe he had asked too much, personal things that even if Law said that it was alright for him to ask, he shouldn't have asked. Things that he could see how much still hurt him, a painful past that he probably didn't wished to remember or to tell anyone, and he regretted to have asked anything about it.

"I'm sorry, Torao... sorry for bothering you when you were tired, and them for asking you about things that I shouldn't have asked. I..." Luffy said, regret taking over him. He thought that he could make him feel better if the man shared his past with him, but it seemed that wasn't what happened. Law was probably lying when he said that i was alright for him to ask anything, or maybe now he was regretting that he had said that. "I just... wanted to help you, and to make you feel better. I'm sorry..."

And that's all that Luffy ever tried to do. Help him, make him feel better, and Law knew that. He knew, and that made Law feel even worse for what he was doing now.

"That's not it... " Law whispered, being honest. Of course it wasn't it, this had nothing to do with him telling his past to Luffy. Or maybe... maybe it did, since that was the moment that he had realized how much he had let the boy get closer to him, and how much he had become special to him, to the point of him telling the boy things that he didn't want to share with anyone.

But that didn't really mattered now.

"Then what is it? What did I do?" Luffy asked, keeping thinking that the blame of what was happening was his and his only. It had to be his, since Law wouldn't be pushing him away from his life without a good reason.

"This... this is something that doesn't matter, Luffy-ya." Law replied, not being able to find any answers to that, since Luffy had done nothing wrong to him. It was quite the contrary, the boy only had done good things to him ever since he appeared in his life again. He kept him company when he was feeling lonely, put smiles on his face, made him laugh, and made him happy when he thought that he would never feel happy again.

But that was all over now.

"It doesn't matter what my reasons are, that won't change the fact that I don't want you around me anymore. Don't ever appear in front of me again." Law then finished, saying his last words to Luffy, ignoring the pain that he felt as he did.

He was ignoring everything, his feelings, his wishes... but when he looked at the boy, there were two things that he couldn't ignore.

Guilt and regret.

He expected Luffy to just keep insisting on knowing what had happened, to say that he wouldn't give up on him or things among these lines, but that's wasn't what happened. Luffy just stayed frozen in place, looking at him while tears started to fill up his eyes, and Law immediately noticed that something was wrong. That wasn't like Luffy, not at all.

The Luffy that he knew would still be on his feet, with his never ending insistence that was already well know of him, but the person that he was seeing now... he looked like he was falling apart.

And he felt terrible, so damn terrible.

He could see that his words had really hurt Luffy, in a way that he didn't think it would, and he immediately wanted to take back everything that he had said, since Luffy didn't deserve to hear those things from him, or to be pushed away from his like like he was being now, but he didn't do it. He couldn't do it, so he just stayed looking at Luffy, who seemed to be so sad and lost.

"I... I don't get it... I..." Luffy started saying, his voice cracking, but he didn't care about that. He just had to say what was on his mind, he had to pull out everything that he was feeling at that moment, or he would regret if he didn't. "I just wanted to be by your side, and to make you happy... because I really care for you... because I love you, and I thought that maybe you felt the same for me... but it seems that I was wrong." Luffy continued, saying everything that he was keeping inside of him out loud. All his care, all his love... all his sadness and deception in realizing that he was so wrong.

He was so wrong about Law, thinking that the man felt something for him, something that now he could see that he so obviously didn't, and he felt like an idiot. He was just deluding himself, and now he could see it.

Now he could see that it was time for him to give up.

"But don't worry... If that's what you wish so much, I won't ever appear in front of you again." Luffy finished, a single tear escaping from his eyes, many others threatening to fall from them.

He started to walk as fast as he could, passing through Law without even looking at him one last time, as he left the place where he used to meet with the man every day, the place that he had so many good memories of, but that now he would have the worst of them.

He left, leaving an astonished surgeon behind.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi! Here's the last chapter, I hope you guys like it! This wasn't supposed to be the last chapter, since I thought writing an epilogue (and I really started writing it), but I don't know if I should so I think I'll just leave things like that.**

 **Thanks for everyone that had read this story, for the favs, follows and review! They motivated me a lot in keeping writing this story until the end. Special thanks to sarge1130, wohmbat, Lionel Orlando, Pachyun, Yuu Hoshimura, SEllen23, 86fran, slothed crow and JustARatInACage for the reviews! They're very much appreciated! ;)**

 **Bye!**

* * *

 _Luffy was there._

 _He was there, by his side, when he thought that he would never see him again._

 _Hands over his, big, bright smile on his face, saying so many things that all of them just seemed nonsence to him, things that he didn't really understood, but he didn't care._

 _Luffy was there, and that was all that mattered to him now._

 _He looked at the boy's face, gently caressing it with his fingers, thinking of how much that person became so much to him in such short amount of time._

 _He meant so much to him, so much, that he couldn't imagine himself without the cheerful boy by his side anymore. His life wouldn't make any sense if he wasn't there with him._

 _"I love you..."_

 _And when the boy whispers those three little words softly into his ears, he thought that things couldn't get even more perfect, that nothing could ruin that moment._

 _At least, that's what he thought._

* * *

Law's eyes shot open as he quickly got up from his bed, eyes wide, looking at the surroundings, desperately searching for a certain someone, hoping that he would find that person there, somewhere, standing by his side, wishing a good morning, giving him a big bright smile, while saying the words that he so desperately wanted to hear again.

 _"I love you"_

But no matter how much he would look, he knew, he just knew that Luffy wasn't there.

Luffy wasn't anywhere anymore.

He wasn't at home, he wasn't at the park they used to walk on the evenings, wasn't at the coffee shop where sometimes they would go to take breakfast, wasn't at the restaurant where they had gone in their first "date"... wasn't sitting on the bench in front of the hospital, waiting for him with a big smile on his face, something that he was so used to see, and that he loved so much.

He wasn't anywhere to be found, and with every passing second he could feel the longing that he felt for him growing more and more.

But he had no right to complain, not when this was all his own fault.

He was the one who had pushed the person that he loved, and still loves, away from his life, and his absence was something that he had to deal with.

He had to, but still he just couldn't do it.

It's been one full month since the last time that he had seen Luffy, that he had any kind of contact with him, on that day when he did what he knew now that was the most stupid that he had ever made on his life, and he could feel the longing and the need to see the boy growing inside of him day after day.

And the regret of having done something that he should never have done as well.

 _'I'm such an idiot...'_ He thought, wanting to give him big slap on his face, as he remembered what had happened a month ago.

That day when Luffy, for the last time, went after him at the hospital, wanting to just talk to him, to be with him, helping him with whatever problems that he was having, only to be pushed away from him.

The last day when he saw his bright smile, heard his voice, received his warm embrace, and the first and the last time that he had heard those three little words coming out of his mouth, those words that meant the world to him, before disappearing from his life forever.

 _"I love you"_

And it was those three little words that made him regret every single thing that he had said to the boy on that day.

He was so sure that he was doing the right thing, so sure that he would be better off without Luffy, so sure that once he turned his back to him and disappeared from his life he would be able to simply forget everything about him and move on with his life like nothing had ever happened, as if Luffy had never been there to start with, but days and days had passed and he realized how wrong he was.

He thought that distancing himself from Luffy would prevent him from going through any more pain in his life, but the pain that only grew inside of him day after day told him that he was wrong, so damn wrong.

Too bad that he didn't realized that, realized how wrong he was, until it was very late for him to do something.

And it wasn't like he hadn't tried. He tried, he really did, in all ways he could think of. He tried to call him, had sent countless messages to him, but Luffy never answered his calls or replied to his messages. He had gone to all the places that where they used to go together, hoping that he would just find him in any one of them, but he was nowhere to be seen. He had waited for him to appear at the hospital like he always did, he had waited for days and days, but he never appeared again. He even had gone after him in his brother's house, despite the risk of being chased away from there, hoping that he could see Luffy again, but he found nothing.

Well, nothing but a furious older brother, who made question of showing that he wasn't welcome there by punching him in the face, saying words that somehow he already expected him to hear.

 _"You got damn guts to appear here after what you did to Luffy... you knew how much he was hurting because of Ace's death, and then you had to go and hurt him even more by breaking his heart! What the hell he did wrong for you to do that!?"_

Every time he had heard those words, repeating themselves into his head over and over again, the guilty that he was feeling grew even more inside of him.

He had hurt Luffy when he knew that he was already hurting inside, and he had broken his heart when his heart was already shattered. He had taken him away from his life, when all the boy wanted was to stay by his side, and he couldn't forgive himself because of it.

And worst of all, is that he was sure that he might never have the chance to fix things between them again, and he was more and more sure of it every time that he reminded himself of the last words that Luffy's brother had said to him before he slammed the door on his face on that day, not before, of course, punching him again.

 _"He's gone, he isn't living here anymore, so get the hell away from here."_

And he was really gone. He was gone, like he had asked him to do, and he had never seen him again, like he said that he didn't want to. All lies, but these lies had a big impact on his life. Lies that took the person the one person that he really loved away from him, and that hurt.

That hurt like nothing else ever hurt him before, and he wasn't talking about the pain that he was feeling on his face, where Luffy's brother had hit him twice. He was talking about the pain that he felt when he noticed something.

Noticed that he really had lost Luffy, that he had no ways of reaching him anymore.

And that hurt him way too much.

Feeling lost and broken, he wandered in the streets, not knowing where he was going, and not caring about it. He walked, many people passing through him, couples, people that he didn't know who they were, but who he suddenly started to feel so jealous of. The all were looking so happy, and he couldn't help but think that it could be him, he and Luffy, walking there, holding hands, smiling at each other, so happy together.

It could have been them, but he made the biggest mistake of his entire life, and he would never have that.

And he felt his heart shattering to pieces at that thought.

Feeling physically and mentally exhausted, he sat down on a bench, not being able to see clearly anymore, many tears starting to gather in his eyes, and for the first time he just let them fall freely, hoping that all the sadness and pain that he was feelings inside of him would just go away with them.

He hoped, even knowing that he was just fooling himself.

That was only one thing that would make it go away.

And that one thing was Luffy.

* * *

 _'It still hurts...'_

Luffy looked at the place in front of him, feeling a bothersome, sharp pain in his chest as he did so.

He never thought that he would ever come back to the place where he was now, he had all the reasons in the world to not to do so, the reasons given to him by a certain person that he used to wait in the very same place where he was now, but these reasons didn't stop him to come anyway.

He ignored the bad memories of the last day he had been there, exactly a month ago, when the person that he loved so much took him away from his life, and sat down on the bench, feeling more anxious with every passing second, something that he couldn't control.

It was hard to control his feelings and emotions when he had no idea of what was going to happen next.

When he was about to meet with the person that he thought that would never see again, the person that no matter how hard he had tried, he could never forget.

And it wasn't like he hadn't tried. He tried, he really did, in all the ways he could think of. He turned off his cell phone and put it into a place that he would eventually forget where it was, because it made him remind of Law, since it still had all the messages that they had sent to each other. He had stayed away from the hospital, from the places where he and Law used to visit when they would go out. He even goy out from his brother's house, going back to the place where he used to live when his brother Ace was still alive, where his friends were waiting for him.

But still he couldn't do it. He couldn't forget the man, and before he knew it, he was back to the same place.

Back to his brother's home, that now was his home too, since he decided to move in there. It was still painful to be there, but that was the place where he belonged now, close to his brother, whom he loved so much. Close to the person that he loved, and no matter how hard he tried he could never forget, even if he had no hopes of having a place in his life again.

And it was there, in that place, that the hope that he had lost flourished inside of him again, all because of two simple things that his brother told him, even if he didn't want to.

 _"I didn't want to tell you this, but I need to be honest with you..."_ and _"That man came after you a few days ago, saying that he was sorry and regretted what he had done to you."_

Two simple phrases, but that meant so much to him.

Sabo could have hid that from him, he probably wanted to, but he decided to be honest, maybe because he knew all too well that he still loved Law, and even if he didn't like, he still respected that. And Luffy was glad for that, glad that Sabo understood what that would mean to him.

He was glad, and surprised, since he didn't expect Law to go after him after what he had said, after letting it clear that he didn't wanted him into his life ever again. He was even more surprised because the man said that he was sorry and regretted what he did, and this was something that he really didn't expect.

He didn't expect, and he didn't really knew what to think about that.

Was he regretting it because he didn't mean what he had said, or because he was only feeling guilty for what he had done to him?

He didn't know if it would be a wise thing to do, but he had to see the man again, had to know the answer to his question.

And as he decided that, he started to run to the door, as something came to his mind.

He didn't know why, but he thought that the answers that he was seeking could be closer than he thought, as he remembered his cell phone. What if the man had tried to contact him, had called him, had sent messages to him that could give the answers that he was seeking?

That was a possibility, and that made him run to the place that he thought that he would have forgotten by now, and took his cell phone into his hands, hoping to see something there, something that confirmed what Law had told his brother, that confirmed that he was indeed regretting what he had said and done.

And what he saw was exactly what he was hopping to see.

Countless missed calls, countless unread messages... All of them were different, from different days, and still they shared one thing in common.

The same small phrase that repeated itself in every single one of them.

 _"I'm sorry, forgive me."_

And as he read every single message that he had sent, he could feel even more sure that he was indeed feeling sorry, and regretting what he had done.

He was so sure of it that he didn't waste any time in storming out of his brother's house, going in direction to the hospital, the one place that he was sure that he would find Law, and as weird as that sounded, Sabo didn't make any attempts in stopping him from doing so.

And that was the reason why he was there now, waiting for the one person that he thought that he would never see again.

He needed to hear the man say these things by himself, needed to know why he had said those things to him if he didn't meant to.

And he would get the answers that he was seeking today, no matter what happened.

* * *

Going out of the hospital had become one of the most painful things for Law ever since he took Luffy away from his life. It was painful, because once he left he wouldn't have nothing to distract him anymore, and his mind would be filled with all kinds of thoughts, this that he wished that he could just forget, but that he knew that he would never be able to do.

It was painful, because he knew that once he was out of the hospital his eyes would land on a very familiar spot, where a certain someone used to wait for him every single day, just to see that there wasn't anyone there, and he would feel a painful sensation in his chest that he knew that wouldn't go away anytime soon.

The same thing happened day after day, so he was waiting that today wouldn't be any different, so he was already preparing himself for the disappointment that he knew that he would feel as soon as he passed through the hospital doors, but as soon as he did, that disappointment didn't come.

They were replaced with other feelings, this ones way different from the ones he used to feel.

He was surprised, happy, and many other things that he couldn't put into words at that moment, he felt all that when his eyes landed to a certain place and he saw that it wasn't empty like all the other days.

There was someone there, sitting on the same bench, someone way too familiar to him.

Someone that he missed, and love so much.

"Luffy-ya..." He whispers the name that he thought that would never come out of his mouth again, feeling all kinds of feelings that he could recognize, and many others that he couldn't.

He still couldn't believe that Luffy was there, waiting for him after all the things that he had said and done, and he just wanted to run to where he was and put the boy into his arms, holding him as close to him as he could while whispering into his ears how sorry he was for everything that he did, and to tell him how he truly felt about him, that he loved him and missed him so much, but he knew that he shouldn't do that right now.

He had to fix his mistakes before doing anything else.

This, and he didn't know how Luffy would react once he saw him.

As much as he wanted the boy to greet him with his usual big, bright smile, or even with a tight, warm hug, he knew that it wasn't going to happen. He messes things up between them, and he was lucky if Luffy even wanted to hear what he had to say.

Looking at Luffy, he gave a deep breath, slowing walking to the place where Luffy was, sitting by his side on the bench that they always used to share, the boy with his eyes closed, not even looking at him, but the way that he shifted nervously on his sit told him that he had noticed that he was there.

They didn't say a word for quite some time, just staying side by side, as if they were two strangers that just happened to be close to each other, and Law hated that. They were so close, but so distant from each other, and the man knew that he had to do something immediately to change that situation, to say something to fix things between them, so he started with the most obvious one.

"Luffy-ya, I... I'm sorry...Please forgive me..." He whispered in a barely audible tone, but one that Luffy could hear very well. He knew that Lufy wouldn't forgive him with just these simple words, so he started to think on what to say next.

"... You've already said that, 25 times, if I remember well." Luffy said, a harsh tone on his voice, something that Law didn't expect, but that was comprehensible, he thought, after what he did. "...And this isn't just enough...Law."

At that moment, Law couldn't help but flinch, not at the tone in Luffy's voice, but at the way that he had called him. In all the years that he had known him, this was the first that Luffy had ever called him by his name, and not Torao, like he used to, and this was a bad sign.

"... I know it isn't, but I just want you to know how sorry I am." Law said quietly, reinforcing what he had said to him before, not knowing how Luffy would react next. He was becoming increasing afraid that Luffy would just say that he couldn't forgive him and went away, and he didn't know what he would do if something like that happened.

"That hurt a lot, you know..." Luffy whispered, remembering of how he had felt after he heard all these things from Law, remembering of the pain that he had felt, of the tears that he had cried. Yes, that hurt, but still... still he couldn't bring himself to hate Law, he couldn't hold any kind of grudges against him.

Maybe because he loves him way too much to do so.

"I'm so sorry, Luffy-ya... I didn't meant any of those things that I've said, I really didn't. I don't know if you believe and me, or if you can forgive me, but I-" Law started, ready to beg for Luffy's forgiveness if he had to, but the boy stopped him before he could do so.

"I can forgive you." Luffy said, interrupting Law, and the man immediately looked at him in surprise, hope and happiness growing inside of him as he heard those words. "But not before knowing why you had done that."

At that moment, Law realized that things wouldn't be so easy, and he didn't expect them to be. He knew that he owned Luffy a good explanation, and he would give it to him. He would would do anything that he could in order to Luffy to forgive him, he would put into words every single thing that had made him do what he did, every single feeling that he had for him, even if he had difficulty in expressing himself so fully.

"... I did what I did because I was afraid, Luffy-ya... being with you made me afraid, because every single time that I looked at you I could see how close that we were getting, and how much the feelings that I had for you were growing stronger, and that terrified me..." Law started explaining himself, putting every single thing that he feels into words, while Luffy just closed his eyes and listened to him, taking every word in, as the man continued to talk. "I thought that if that continued, I was going to end up losing you, and I didn't want to go thought that, I wouldn't be able to go through the pain of losing another person who was dear to me..."

Law continued, and Luffy just stayed with eyes closed, keeping his calm and collected posture, something was was becoming increasing difficult for him to do after the things that he had heard. After he had heard from Law's mouth that he really had feelings for him, like he had thought, or better yet, had hoped that he had, and that he was so dear to the man, something that he wished so much to be, but still he stayed quiet, and kept listening to Law's words, since there were still a lot of things that he wished, and hoped to hear.

"... but with a little of time, I've realized that I did the most stupid thing in my life. In the end, I've ended losing you anyway, and... " Law then stopped for a moment, giving a deep breath, as tears started to fill his eyes. He knew that that wasn't the time for him to start crying, but he was a mess emotionally speaking, so it was hard for him to control it. "... and it was so painful to realize that I wouldn't have you around me anymore, and that made me realize that my life didn't have meaning if you weren't there with me... and I know that I acted like an idiot and I'm really sorry, and I may not deserve any forgiveness, but I just want things to be alright between us again, because I need you by my side..."

Law then stopped talking and Luffy couldn't keep his calm façade anymore, not when he had heard all the things that Law had said to him, sounding do sincere, and he could see that when the man's voice started to crack, and when he looked at him, he noticed that were a few tears running down his cheeks, many others still feeling his eyes, and that meant something, that really meant something, since he never, ever had seen the man cry in all these years that he had known the man.

He knew that Law never liked to show weakness, still there he was, looking so vulnerable, and Luffy could see that he was truly being honest, that he really didn't mean those words, that he was regretting what he did... that he really felt something for him, something so special, and Luffy could feel this in his every word.

Without thinking more, he got up from the bench and keeled in front of the man, taking his hands on his own, just like he did in the last time that he had been there, and he could feel a painful sensation on his chest as he remembered what had happened then, but he just ignored it, because now it was different.

It was different because the man didn't bother in hiding his tears from him, and the reason why he was shedding them.

Because instead of saying that he didn't want him around, he fully expressed his need for him to be there, by his side, and so differently from the last time, he could see truth and sincerity in his words.

Yeah, everything was different now, and when he put his arms around Law in a tight hug, he didn't have any fear of being pulled away from him.

"... hey, it's all right..." Luffy whispered in Law's ear, his arms tightening around the man a little, trying to make him feel better. "It's all right, because you were honest with me this time, and I believe in you, so I forgive you..."

"Really?" Law asks, trying to make sure that he had heard right, that Luffy really forgiven him, something that he really didn't expect to happen, at least not so soon. He asked, but he already knew the answer, he knew that Luffy was sincere and truthful in everything that he had said. And that made an unexplainable happiness to grow inside of him.

"Of course..." Luffy affirmed, distancing himself from him so he could look at the man, lifting his hand to Law's face as he wiped a few tears that were still running down his cheeks. "So no more tears, okay?"

Law then nodded, giving a small smile, something that he hadn't given for quite some time now, and Luffy couldn't help but smile back. He loved the man's smile, ever since the first time that he saw it all those years ago, when they were still kids, and Law had opened up to him for the first time. He loved that smile because it was a smile that Law would give to him and only him, so it was very special.

It made him feel special, like he was the most special person to the man. And the way that Law was looking at him only amplified that feeling, because he never had looked at him like that before. He never looked at him so affectionately, so many feelings and emotions in his eyes, some things that he could read and some that he couldn't.

And when he had opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, he felt his heart beating so fast that it was making him breathless.

"Luffy-ya... when we met for the last time, on that day that I..." Law started speaking, but stoopped when he had noticed that he started mentioning what happened on that day, and he didn't want to talk about it anymore. He wanted to forget every single thing about it, except for those three little words that Luffy had said to him, that kept repeating themselves in his mind, and he so desperately needed to know if he still felt like that for him, or if he had ruined everything after what he had done. "When I've saw you last time, you said something to me right before you left, you said that you felt something for me, and I... I wanted to know if you still feels the same way about me... even after what I did."

Law then stopped talking, looking at Luffy with so much expectation on his eyes, and he hasn't even needed to explain more for Luffy to know what exactly he was talking about. He could only be talking about the moment when Luffy had confessed his feelings for him, his love for him, and then he knew what Law wanted to hear from him. And the answer that he wanted to hear was exactly the only one that the boy could give to him.

"I do." Luffy says, looking at the man's eyes, and he could see tears starting to gather in them again, his smile widening, and he could swear that he had never seen the man looking so happy and relieved like he was now. And he could feel happiness growing inside of him too, as he opened his mouth to see those three words one more time, this time not feeling afraid or hesitating because he knew that the man felt the same for him now, the look in his eyes, and everything that had happened ever since the man sat down by his side serving as a confirmation for this. "I still love you, Torao. I've never stopped loving you..."

And as he heard Luffy repeat those words to him, the words that he longed so much to hear once again, he realized that the boy was giving him a chance. A chance to fix what he had done, a chance to say how he truly felt about the boy. A chance to be with him once again, and this was definitely something that he wasn't going to waste.

This time he was going to make he was going to make things right, so he didn't wast any more time in putting the boy in front of him into his arms, giving him a tight, loving embrace, as he started to put into words every single feeling that he had for him.

"I love you too, Luffy-ya... I really love you, and this is all I can think about, this is all I can feel. I think about you all the time, from the time I wake up until the moment that I fall asleep, and it's been like this ever since the first day that you've stepped into my life again, with your never ending insistence in finding a place in it. I admit that at first this was something that bothered me, but now... now I couldn't be more grateful for that. If it wasn't for it, for you, I would still be living my lonely and empty life, pretending that I was alright when in the reality I was just falling apart, and I would never find the happiness that I've found by your side..." Law started to say everything that was on his mind and heart, and he couldn't help but smile, he couldn't stop the happiness that he was growing inside of him with every word, not that he wanted to do that, because that's how he wanted to feel every single day.

This crazy, unexplainable happiness, that only Luffy, only Luffy, and the feelings that he had for him, made him feel. The happiness that he thought that he would never have.

He closed his eyes, thinking in how lucky he was in having the boy in his life, in how much he loved him, and then he could feel his shoulders getting slightly wet, and he knew that Luffy was crying, he knew it and this was something that normally would worry him, even make him panic, but this isn't what happened this time. It didn't happen because he knew that those were tears that the boy was crying were tears of happiness, and then he felt like an idiot like never before for not telling Luffy his true feelings before, throwing at the boy lies and harsh words instead. Things that almost made him lose Luffy forever, and this was something that he now knew that he would never be able to get over with.

"This is what I truly wanted to say, what I should have said, to you on that day, but I was so busy filling my mind with fear of things that I haven't even known if were going to happen that I just couldn't do it... and instead I've ended up saying all those stupid things that I didn't mean to say, things that almost made me lose you forever, and I... I wouldn't be able to handle that, I-"

"You won't lose me." Luffy interrupted Law, pushing himself away from his embrace so he could look at him, his eyes still filled with tears and some still escaping from them, but he didn't care about that now. All he cared about now was in definitely convincing the man that his fears were unfounded. He didn't want Law to keep thinking that he was going to lose him, to keep fearing that, because this was something that would never happen. Not now, when he knew how the man truly felt for him, that he loved him, and now he really felt like he would never leave his side, no matter what may happen, no matter in what situation they could find themselves in. He would never let go of him. " You will never lose me, Torao, so you don't have to be afraid anymore. It's foolish to be afraid, because I promise you that I will never leave you alone, I will never leave you behind, no matter what happens, and I never, ever break my promises. I'll never leave your side, and nothing will take me away from you."

Luffy then stopped talking, and just stayed silently watching Law, waiting for him to say something, anything, but he seemed to be too lost in his thoughts to do so.

And he indeed was.

He knew that Luffy was right, that it was really foolish to be afraid of something that might never happen, he knew it by experience, he knew it because it was this fear that made him distance himself from the boy in the worst way possible, and it was because of this fear that he almost lost him, but still this fear was something that was really difficult to forget. It was hard to take it away from him, since it was fixed in his mind and heart, due of all the traumatic experiences that he had to go through, he losing someone important in every single one of them. It was hard, but he decided that he would do his best to do so, because he believed in Luffy's promise of never leaving him, he really did, and he wouldn't let his fears to distance himself from the person that he loved again.

Not now, when he got Luffy's forgiveness, and now that he knew that the boy still loved him, and wanted to be with him. Not now, when for the first time he felt that the boy was his, and his only, and that there was something really special between them, something so special that he couldn't even put into words.

They could be always together now, build something together, and he wasn't letting anything stand in their way.

"I know, Luffy-ya... I know that it's foolish to have this fear inside of me, and I've noticed that in that day, when I almost lost you forever because of it. It's hard for me to just forget it, but I'll do my best to take this fear away from my mind and heart, I'm not letting it make me do something so stupid again, and I won't let it distance myself from you ever again, because I love you, and I want to be with you..." Law finished, looking at Luffy, and he couldn't help but smile, a smile that only widened when he saw the boy give to him the brightest and most beautiful smile that he had ever seen, before literally jumping in his arms and giving a tight hug, almost knocking him down from the place where he was sitting, but he didn't really minded that, he really didn't, and started to laugh happily alongside the boy, feeling happy and light headed like he had never felt in his life, and this happiness only grew with every word that Luffy whispered into his ears.

"I love you too, Torao, I really love you, and I promise that I will always be by your side, no matter what happens. I'll do my best to help you to overcome your fears, to take all the pain that you still feel away from you and to make you happier and happier with every passing day."

And Law knew that he really would, he really would. Luffy always did his best for him, always watching over him and worrying about him, always trying to make him feel better when he was down. Always making him happy, when he thought that he would never be happy again.

Luffy always did so much for him, and he... he never did anything for him, never even thanked him for all that he had done. The only thing that he had ever done was hurting the boy, saying harsh words, taking him away from his life when he only wanted to stay. But at that moment, upon hearing those words, he promised to himself that things would be different now.

He promised that he was going to do his best for Luffy too.

He was going to do his best to make up for the bad things that had done to him. He was going to do his best to make him smile, to make him happy, to help him and confort him when he needed.

He was going to do his best to make things perfect between them.

Perfect like they were now, with Luffy looking do deeply in his eyes, a soft smile on his face, looking happy like he had never seen before, so close to him that their noses were almost touching. And when he closed the distanced that remained between them, putting his lips over Luffy's soft ones in a short, warm kiss, he could swear that things couldn't be more perfect than they were now.

And he was going to make sure that things stayed like this, for the rest of his life.


End file.
